William T. Blackstone
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|---|---|
| Born | William Thomas Blackstone, Jr. (1931-12-08)December 8, 1931
Augusta, Georgia, United States
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| Died | November 14, 1977(1977-11-14) (aged 45) |
| Occupation | Academic |
| Academic background | |
| Alma mater | Duke University (PhD) |
| Thesis | The Ethics of Francis Hutcheson (1957) |
| Academic work | |
| Institutions | University of Georgia |
William Thomas Blackstone, Jr. (December 8, 1931 – November 14, 1977) was an American academic and philosopher.
A graduate of Elon College and Duke University, Blackstone established himself as a career academic at the University of Florida and University of Georgia. He stayed with the latter until his death, leading its philosophy department from 1964 until 1972 and holding other key academic positions within the university. He served on the editorial boards of prominent and regional philosophical journals and held presidencies of various professional groups, alongside serving on the Executive Committee of the American Philosophical Association.
Throughout his life, Blackstone published several books and articles on topics relating to the philosophy of religion, ethics, and the concept of freedom. He saw praise for his work during his life, gaining three awards from the Southern Society for Philosophy and Psychology as well as various awards from the University of Georgia. Following his death, his work was recognised by a memorial issue of Social Theory and Practice and dedications from his contemporaries in other works.
Blackstone was born on December 8, 1931, in Augusta, Georgia.[2]: 369 He studied his undergraduate degree at Elon College, graduating in 1953.[1]: 240 While there, he took part in several sports, including tennis and basketball.[3]: 141 He was the college's joint-lead punter during 1951 and 1952,[4] and was ranked the best receiver in the American football program for 1952.[5] He became a letterman for his participation in the team.[6]
He later studied at Duke University, receiving an MA in 1955 and a PhD in 1957.[1]: 240 While there, he became friends with Kai Nielsen: despite disagreeing politically, both had an interest in John Rawls' A Theory of Justice.[3]: 143
Following his PhD, Blackstone joined Elon College's philosophy department for one year,[1]: 240 before joining the University of Florida as Assistant Professor of Philosophy, where he stayed until 1961.[2]: 369 He then joined the University of Georgia as Assistant Professor of Philosophy,[2]: 369 leading the department from 1964 until 1972.[3]: 141 He served as Chairman of the Division of Social Sciences from 1969 and became Research Professor of Philosophy in 1975, holding both positions until his death.[2]: 369
In 1975, Blackstone held a seminar for the National Endowment for the Humanities, focusing on "justice and equality" in John Rawls' philosophy.[3]: 143
In 1963, Blackstone published The Problem of Religious Knowledge, in which Tad S. Clements says he "attempts [...] to apply criteria of cognitivity and of warranted assertability to religious utterances".[7] In 1965, he published a book on Francis Hutcheson titled Francis Hutcheson and Contemporary Ethical Theory. It contains detailed analysis of Hutcheson's beliefs, as well as comparisons with Richard Price and various twentieth-century philosophers.[8]: 177
In 1969, he published a collection of essays titled The Concept of Equality, featuring writing by Isaiah Berlin, Bernard Williams, John Plamenatz, Andrew J. Reck, Herbert Spiegelberg, and Monroe Beardsley.[9]: 135 John Howie praised the book for its wide range of views on equality, saying "it is a pleasure to recommend this book to all who have a serious concern for equality, its theory and practice".[9]: 137 In the same year, Blackstone and George L. Newsome edited Education and Ethics, a collection of eight essays presented at a University of Georgia symposium.[10]: 188 InPhilosophy & Rhetoric, John Waite Bowers found little relevance outside of the essays by Frederick A. Olafson and Anthony A. Nemetz, stating "the other essays are so innocuous that no such human judgment is necessary".[10]: 190
From 18 to 20 February 1971, the University of Georgia held the Fourth Annual Conference in Philosophy.[11]: 223 The conference, organized by Blackstone, was the first ever philosophical conference on environmental ethics,[1]: 241 A collection of the papers presented was published in 1974,[1]: 241 given the title Philosophy & Environmental Crisis.[12]: 379 The conference featured talks from Blackstone and fellow philosophers Joel Feinberg, Charles Hartshorne, Walter H. O'Briant, Nicholas Rescher, Robert G. Burton, and Pete A. Y. Gunter, as well as biologist Eugene Odum.[12]: 378 Writing in Journal of Thought, J. M. Riteris notes that Blackstone's essay had been published in The Southern Journal of Philosophy prior to the book's release.[12]: 380 A review published in Ecology Law Quarterly argued that "although it has little new thought or information, Philosophy and Environmental Crisis provides an understanding of the conceptual dimensions of the environmental crisis".[11]: 225
In 1972, Blackstone and Robert H. Ayers edited a series of papers titled Religious Language and Knowledge, the essays being the outcome of the University of Georgia's 1965 "Great Thinkers Forum".[13]: 202 Writing in Review of Religious Research, Tracy R. Gran criticized the book for "seem[ing] more dogmatic and logological than analytic" and failing to "establish a frame of reference for the critical analysis of religious language and knowledge".[13]: 203 Thomas McPherson also criticized the book, noting the lack of explanation over the seven-year publication delay and arguing that "most of the material deals with rather familiar themes in a not markedly new way".[14]: 95
Blackstone served on the editorial boards of many journals, including:
Blackstone held posts in the following professional groups:
From 1973 until 1976, he served on the Executive Committee of the American Philosophical Association.[3]: 142 He served on its Committee on Defense of Professional Rights.[2]: 369 He was also a member of the American section of the International Association for Philosophy of Law and Social Philosophy.[3]: 143
Blackstone's early writing focused on religious knowledge and religious language, as well as normative ethics and metaethics.[3]: 142 His later works concerned the real-life application of theories of justice and equality.[3]: 142
According to Gene G. James, Blackstone's believed that
philosophy differs from the sciences because it deals with the conceptual and normative problems which cannot be solved by scientific methods, and because it treats the assumptions of the sciences as themselves problematic. However, like science, it has as one of its ultimate goals, truth about human beings, society, and the world. Blackstone thus rejects the view of philosophy as consisting of conceptual analysis alone.[17]: 145
James argues that Blackstone's work "is both an expression of, and an attempt to extend, human freedom".[17]: 162
Blackstone rejected both utilitarian and Kantian ethics, saying:
It seems to me that an adequate ethic must include a number of moral principles—utility, justice or fairness, and benevolence—and it must be recognized that on some occasions these principles simply conflict.[17]: 153
According to Gene G. James, Blackstone believed the best ethical theories are those which "further the growth and development of humans as rational, social beings".[17]: 154
Blackstone rejected the idea that humans have a fixed nature, believing that "the attempt to provide an ontological foundation for a certain concept of human nature via the notion of essence is a surreptitious or disguised moral judgment".[17]: 157 Gene G. James argues that he sees choice and the possibility of growth as integral to human existence: "he believes that man to a great extent makes himself".[17]: 157 James compares these ideas to those of John Dewey, who also noted the importance of growth and freedom.[17]: 158
Blackstone believed that people must live in a democracy if they are to reach the "fullest sense of freedom".[17]: 152
Blackstone was married to Jean, with whom he had children named Lisa and Jeff.[3]: 141 He died of cancer on November 14, 1977.[3]: 141
Blackstone continued playing tennis after college and was a "formidable competitor", finding success in amateur competition.[16]
Blackstone received the Southern Society for Philosophy and Psychology's annual award for the best research paper each year from 1959 until 1961.[1]: 240–1 In 1965, he received the M. G. Michael award from the University of Georgia.[1]: 241 Before his death, Blackstone had been selected to receive the Outstanding Honors Professor Award at the University of Georgia.[3]: 142
Following his death, the University of Georgia established the William T. Blackstone Scholarship Fund to provide scholarships for "outstanding undergraduates".[3]: 142
In 1978, Richard T. De George and Joseph A. Pichler dedicated their book Ethics, Free Enterprise, and Public Policy to Blackstone.[1]: 241 The following year, the journal Social Theory and Practice published a memorial issue to Blackstone.[3]: 141 The articles were published by his friends and colleagues, and concerned topics he had written about through his career.[3]: 142 He received a further memorial in the first issue of Environmental Ethics, written by his colleague Walter H. O'Briant.[16]
