Finding Aids

Philosophy

Adler, Mortimer J.. Papers

Mortimer Jerome Adler, philosopher, educator, writer. The Mortimer J. Adler Papers include information on his work with the Great Books, Encyclopaedia Britannica, and the Institute for Philosophical Research as well as material relating to his many publications. The collection consists of articles, correspondence, manuscripts, memoranda, newspaper clippings, notes, reading lists, reprints, and other materials relating to the career of Mortimer J. Adler.

Ames, Edward Scribner. Papers

Edward Scribner Ames (1870-1958) Professor of Philosophy. The collection contains correspondence, manuscripts, photographs, scrapbooks, and newspaper clippings. Includes correspondence with Vachel Lindsay (1904-1927).

Ames, Van Meter. Papers

Van Meter Ames, author and Professor of philosophy. The Van Meter Ames Papers consist of articles, manuscripts, paper abstracts, and other items related to Van Meter Ames.

Aristotle, De moribus ad Nicomachum. Manuscript (Ms 5)

Argyropulos' translation of Ethica Nicomachea made for Cosime de Medici. Text in Latin. Codex Ms 5.

Averroës, Notabilia Dicta; Albertus Magnus, Tractatus Proportionum; Anonymous, Latitudines Formarum; and Robertus Anglicus, Compilatio Super Tractatu de Sphaera. Manuscript (Ms 3)

Copy of Averroes' Notabilia dicta, plus incomplete portions of commentaries on Aristotle's De Anima and Metaphysics, and of the medical tract Al-Kulliyyat. Bound with three unrelated treatises: Albertus Magnus, Tractatus proportionum; Anonymous, Latitudines formarum; and Robertus Anglicus, Compilatio super tractatu de sphaera. Circa 1430-1450. Text in Latin. Codex Ms 3.

Blair, Gavin, Commentarii in libros ethicos Aristotelis. Manuscript (Ms 101)

Commentary on Aristotle's Nicomachean ethics with other miscellaneous commentaries. Text in Latin. Codex Ms 101.

Cohen, Morris Raphael. Papers

Morris Raphael Cohen (1880-1947), Philosopher. Papers highlight Cohen's influence as an early proponent of legal philosophy; his career as a teacher of philosophy, especially at the City College of New York; Jewish concerns and his affiliation with the Conference on Jewish Relations; writings on the philosophy of history, the philosophy of science, social philosophy, logic and ethics; and an extensive correspondence with family, friends, professional associates, and major contemporary philosophers.

Dewey, John. Collection

John Dewey (1859-1952) was an American philosopher, psychologist, and educator. He helped found the philosophic school of pragmatism, the school of functional psychology, and was a leader of a progressive reform movement in American education. The Collection contains biographical information, a course syllabus taught by Dewey, reprints of Dewey’s writings, a photocopy of the manuscript for Principles of Education, articles and reprints about John Dewey, and book reviews of books about Dewey.

Elshtain, Jean Bethke. Papers

Jean Bethke Elshtain (1941-2013) was a political theorist, ethicist, author, and public intellectual. She was the Laura Spelman Rockefeller Professor of Social and Political Ethics with joint appointments at the Divinity School, the Department of Political Science, and the Committee on International Relations at the University of Chicago. The collection includes personal ephemera; correspondence; subject files; materials related to her writings and speaking engagements; university administrative and teaching materials; records documenting Elshtain's activities in professional, nonprofit, and governmental organizations; awards; photographs; audio and video recordings; and posters. Materials date between 1935 and 2017, with the bulk of the material dating between 1950 and 2013. The papers primarily document Elshtain's career in academia as a political theorist, and her activities as a public intellectual called upon to address issues related to feminism, war, and political ethics.

Geschichte der Philosophie nach Hegel, Notes Taken in Lectures

Notes taken by an unidentified student in lectures by Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel on the history of philosophy, at the University of Berlin, in winter 1829-1830. Codex Ms 430.

Giles, of Rome, Archbishop of Bourges, De regimine principum. Manuscript (Ms 533)

Henri de Gauchi's free French translation of the treatise by Egidio Colonna. Originally composed for the education of Philip IV (while still Prince Philippe le Bel). Text in French. Codex Ms 533.

Gregory I, Pope, Morali. Manuscript (Ms 59)

Moral teaching. Text in Italian. Codex Ms 59.

Mead, George Herbert. Papers

George Herbert Mead (1863-19310 educator, social psychologist, philosopher. The Mead Papers contain correspondence, primarily with family members including Henry Northrup Castle, Helen Castle Mead, Henry Castle Mead, and Irene Tufts Mead. Other correspondents include John Dewey and Charles Morris. The collection also includes manuscripts of published journal articles and books, correspondence relating to publications, and student notes from Mead's courses.

Mill, John Stuart. Collection

Correspondence and two manuscript speeches titled "On the Universities" by English philosopher and political economist John Stuart Mill (1806-1873.)

Pelacani da Parma, Biagio, Quaestiones super libro Methaurorum. Manuscript (Ms 10)

Commentary on Aristotle's Meteorologica. Text in Latin. Codex Ms 10.

Polanyi, Michael. Papers

Michael Polanyi, chemist and philosopher, was born, Budapest, Hungary, 1891. He received his M.D. (1913) and Ph.D (1917) from the University of Budapest. He worked at Kaiser Wilhelm Institute of Fibre Chemistry, Berlin, 1920 to 1923, and the Institute of Physical and Electro-Chemistry, Berlin, 1923 to 1933. He was chair of physical chemistry, 1933 to 1948, and professor of social studies, 1948-58, at the University of Manchester. Polanyi was senior research fellow, Merton College, Oxford, from 1958 to 1976. Died, 1976. The papers of Michael Polanyi contains personal and professional correspondence; research notes; manuscripts of lectures, published and unpublished works, speeches, German scientific writings, patents, and poetry; diaries and notebooks; offprints; and memorabilia, including photographs, clippings, a sound recording of an interview with Polanyi, Christmas cards, and invitations. Also includes photocopies of title pages of the 1,500 books from Polanyi's library. Correspondents include Joseph Oldham, Marjorie Grene, Harry Prosch, Arthur Koestler, Karl Mannheim, Edward Shils, and Eugene Wigner. Manuscripts and correspondence reveal the range of Polanyi's philosophical thought and interests in intellectual liberty and the issue of planning in science. Correspondence also illustrates Polanyi's participation in the organization of the Congress for Cultural Freedom and the Committee on Science and Freedom.

Seneca, Lucius Annaeus, Spurious works. Manuscript (Ms 42)

Philosophical texts on morality. Text in Latin. Codex Ms 42.

Strauss, Leo. Papers

Leo Strauss (1899-1973), scholar of political philosophy. The Papers include correspondence, manuscripts, research notes, notebooks, publications and audio recordings. The papers document Strauss' career as a writer and professor of political philosophy at the Academy of Jewish Research, Berlin (1925-1932), the New School for Social Research (1941-1948), the University of Chicago (1949-1968) and other institutions in the United States and Europe.

Thompson, Manley H. Papers

Manley Hawn Thompson was Professor of Philosophy at the University of Chicago from 1949 to 1987. The collection mostly contains correspondence and drafts of his and others' scholarly writings, dating from 1939 to 1998. The bulk of the material is from the 1980s.

Tufts, James Hayden. Papers

James Hayden Tufts (1862-1942) was on the faculty of the Department of Philosophy at the University of Chicago from 1892-1930. He was Dean of the Senior Colleges (1898-1904), Dean of Faculties and Vice-President of the University (1924-26), Acting President of the University (1925-26), and editor of the International Journal of Ethics (1914-1930). The Tufts Papers include professional correspondence (1909-1942); philosophy outlines, notes and lectures; drafts of Tufts' memoirs; papers concerning the City Club of Chicago Committee on Housing Conditions (1908-13); and documents related to the Illinois Committee on Social Legislation (1912-17).

Unity of Science Movement. Records

The Unity of Science Movement, founded by sociologist Otto Neurath, sought a common empirical attitude toward all the sciences and strove to develop a single, comprehensive scientific language. Along with a philosophic program, the members of the movement undertook the publication of the International Encyclopedia of Unified Science. The collection contains correspondence, manuscripts, financial records, programs, reprints, a photograph, and newspaper clippings. Includes extensive correspondence of members involved in the movement, as well as organizational materials and abstracts from the International Congresses for the Unity of Science. Also includes material related to the International Encyclopedia of Unified Science. Correspondents include Percy W. Bridgman, Rudolph Carnap, John Dewey, Herbert Feigl, Philipp Frank, Joergen Joergensen, Victor Lenzen, Charles W. Morris, Otto Neurath, Hans Reichenbach, Louis Roughier, and Bertrand Russell.