Judith Jarvis Thomson
Judith Jarvis Thomson | |
---|---|
) | |
Spouse | |
Era | Contemporary philosophy |
Region | Western philosophy |
School | Analytic philosophy |
Doctoral students | Kathrin Koslicki |
Notable ideas | The trolley problem, ethics concerning abortion |
Judith Jarvis Thomson (October 4, 1929 – November 20, 2020) was an American philosopher who studied and worked on ethics and metaphysics. Her work ranges across a variety of fields, but she is most known for her work regarding the thought experiment titled the trolley problem and her writings on abortion. She is credited with naming, developing, and initiating the extensive literature on the trolley problem first posed by Philippa Foot which has found a wide range use since.[1] Thomson also published a paper titled "A Defense of Abortion", which makes the argument that the procedure is morally permissible even if it is assumed that a fetus is a person with a right to life. She was elected a member of the American Philosophical Society in 2019.
Early life and education
Thomson was born in New York City, on October 4, 1929. Her mother Helen (Vostry) Jarvis[2] (1898-1935) was an English teacher, and her father Theodore Richard Jarvis[3] (1896-1984) was an accountant.[4] Helen died from cancer when Judith was six, and on January 29, 1938 Theodore married Gertrude Rubin[5] (1902-1982). Gertrude was Jewish and had two children.[4]
Thomson’s parents placed no religious pressure on her, but she officially converted to Judaism at age fourteen, when she was confirmed at Temple Israel in Manhattan.[4]
Thomson graduated from
In 1960, Thomson began teaching at Barnard College.[6] In 1962, she married James Thomson, who was a visiting professor at Columbia University. Judith and James spent the 1962–1963 academic year at Oxford, after which they moved to Boston. Judith taught for a year at Boston University and, in 1964, was appointed to the faculty at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) where she was Laurence S. Rockefeller Professor of Philosophy. James was also appointed a professor of philosophy at MIT. The Thomsons divorced in 1980; they remained colleagues until James's death in 1984.[4]
Career
Thomson was a visiting professor at the
In 2012, Thomson was awarded the Quinn Prize by the American Philosophical Association.[8]
In 2015, she was awarded an honorary doctorate by the University of Cambridge,[9] and in 2016 she was awarded an honorary doctorate by Harvard University.[10] In 2016, she was elected a Corresponding Fellow of the British Academy.[11]
Thomson died on November 20, 2020, at the age of 91.[12][13] She was buried beside her former husband in Mount Auburn Cemetery.[14]
Philosophical views
Thomson's main areas of research were moral philosophy and
"
In regards to ethical theories, Thomson was opposed to consequentialist, hedonist, and subjectivist perspectives.[18][19] Her work relied on specific elements of deontological argumentation.[20]
In metaphysics, Thomson focused on questions regarding the relationship between actions and events, and between time and physical parts.[21]
She also made significant contributions on the topic of privacy.[22]
Selected publications
- Thomson, Judith Jarvis (1971). "A Defense of Abortion" (PDF). JSTOR 2265091.
- Thomson, Judith Jarvis (1975). "The Right to Privacy". JSTOR 2265075.
- Thomson, Judith Jarvis (1976). "Killing, Letting Die, and the Trolley Problem" (PDF). PMID 11662247.
- Thomson, Judith Jarvis (1977). Acts and Other Events. Ithaca, New York: OCLC 655087495.
- Thomson, Judith Jarvis (1986). Rights, Restitution, and Risk: Essays in Moral Theory. Cambridge, Massachusetts: OCLC 1151158974.
- Thomson, Judith Jarvis (May 1985). "The Trolley Problem" (PDF). JSTOR 796133.
- Thomson, Judith Jarvis, ed. (1987). On Being and Saying: Essays for Richard Cartwright. Cambridge, Massachusetts: ISBN 978-0262200639.
- Thomson, Judith Jarvis (1990). The Realm of Rights. Cambridge, Massachusetts: OCLC 1151074383.
- Thomson, Judith Jarvis (January 1994). "Goodness and Utilitarianism". Proceedings and Addresses of the American Philosophical Association. 67 (4): 5–21. JSTOR 3130740.
- OCLC 1036773391.
- Thomson, Judith Jarvis (2001). Goodness and Advice. Princeton, New Jersey: OCLC 362799240.
See also
- Fact and Value: Essays on Ethics and Metaphysics for Judith Jarvis Thomson
- American philosophy
- The fat man version of the trolley problem
- Violinist (thought experiment)
- List of American philosophers
References
- ISBN 9780691154022. "Philippa Foot set Trolleyology going, but it was Judith Jarvis Thomson, a philosopher at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, who delivered its most high-voltage jolt. Struck by Foot's thought experiment she responded with not one but two influential articles on what she labeled The Trolley Problem."
- ^ Helen Vostry (September 26, 1898 - December 30, 1935)
- ^ (February 28, 1896 - February 6, 1984) - Theodore's name was originally Isidor Jarvitz. On May 22, 1912 he legally changed his name to Isidor Yavis. Then, at some time later, he started using the name "Theodore Jarvis". The name "Theodore" was an Americanized version of the name Isidor, and the surname "Jarvis" consisted of the letters "Jar" (the first three letters of the surname Jarvitz) combined with the letters "vis" (the last three letters of the surname Yavis). For documents supporting these statements please see: (1) https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/details/GDFC-NPX and (2) https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-L9MC-NLCV?i=106&cc=1999177&personaUrl=%2Fark%3A%2F61903%2F1%3A1%3AQYMG-FVN2
- ^ a b c d e f g Gendler, Tamar S. (February 27, 2009). "Judith Jarvis Thomson". Jewish Women's Archive. Retrieved November 21, 2020.
- ^ Gertrude Rubin (September 9, 1902 - November 13, 1982)
- ^ a b Byrne, Alex. "Professor Emerita Judith Jarvis Thomson, highly influential philosopher, dies at 91". Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Retrieved December 11, 2020.
- ^ Thomson, Judith Jarvis (March 1999). "Goodness and Advice" (PDF). Tanner Lectures on Human Values. Retrieved July 8, 2019.
- ^ "American Philosophical Association honors Judith Jarvis Thomson". MIT School of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences. 2012.
- ^ "Honorary Degrees 2015". University of Cambridge. 2015.
- ^ "Honorary Degrees". 2016.
- ^ "Professor Judith Thomson FBA". The British Academy. Archived from the original on August 4, 2020.
- ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved December 5, 2020.
- ISSN 1423-3967. Retrieved December 2, 2020.
- ^ "Professor Emerita Judith Jarvis Thomson, highly influential philosopher, dies at 91". MIT News | Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Retrieved February 19, 2021.
- ^ McGrath, Sarah (2005). "Thomson, Judith Jarvis (1929—)". Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Retrieved November 21, 2020.
- ^ Burgis, Ben (November 30, 2020). "Judith Jarvis Thomson (1929–2020)". Jacobin. Retrieved December 11, 2020.
- .
- JSTOR 3506252– via JSTOR.
- JSTOR 2660325– via JSTOR.
- )
- ISBN 978-0-19-975466-3, archived from the originalon March 11, 2021, retrieved March 11, 2021
- JSTOR 2265075.
External links