Gustav Bergmann (; May 4, 1906 – April 21, 1987) was an Austrian-American philosopher. He studied at the
University of Vienna
The University of Vienna (, ) is a public university, public research university in Vienna, Austria. Founded by Rudolf IV, Duke of Austria, Duke Rudolph IV in 1365, it is the oldest university in the German-speaking world and among the largest ...
and was a member of the
Vienna Circle. Bergmann was influenced by the philosophers
Moritz Schlick,
Friedrich Waismann, and
Rudolf Carnap, who were members of the Circle.
"Gustav Bergmann" (clas.uiowa.edu)
/ref> In the United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
, he was a professor of philosophy
Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...
and psychology
Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Its subject matter includes the behavior of humans and nonhumans, both consciousness, conscious and Unconscious mind, unconscious phenomena, and mental processes such as thoughts, feel ...
at the University of Iowa.
Biography
Bergmann was born in Vienna
Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...
, Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe#Before World War I, Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military ...
. He earned his Ph.D. in mathematics at the University of Vienna
The University of Vienna (, ) is a public university, public research university in Vienna, Austria. Founded by Rudolf IV, Duke of Austria, Duke Rudolph IV in 1365, it is the oldest university in the German-speaking world and among the largest ...
in 1928. His dissertation, directed by Walther Mayer, was titled ''Zwei Beiträge zur mehrdimensionalen Differentialgeometrie''. While studying for his doctorate
A doctorate (from Latin ''doctor'', meaning "teacher") or doctoral degree is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism '' licentia docendi'' ("licence to teach ...
, he was invited to join the Vienna Circle, a group of philosophers, mathematicians, scientists, and others committed to a scientific worldview under the name of logical positivism. In 1930–31, he worked with Albert Einstein in Berlin. Unable as a Jew to find academic employment, Bergmann obtained a J.D. degree from the University of Vienna in 1935, and practiced corporate law until he and his family fled to the United States in 1938. Settling at the University of Iowa in Iowa City in 1939, Bergmann eventually became professor of both philosophy and psychology.
He died in Iowa City.
Bibliography
* ''The Metaphysics of Logical Positivism''. New York: Longmans, Green & Co. 1954. (Second edition: Madison, University of Wisconsin Press, 1967.)
* ''Philosophy of Science''. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press 1957.
* ''Meaning and Existence''. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press 1959.
* ''Logic and Reality''. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press 1964.
* ''Realism: A Critique of Brentano and Meinong''. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press 1967.
* ''New Foundations of Ontology''. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press 1992. Edited by William Heald.
* ''Collected Works. Vol I. II''. Frankfurt am Main: Ontos Verlag 2003.
See also
* American philosophy
* List of American philosophers
References
References
* ''Ontology and Analysis: Essays and Recollections about Gustav Bergmann'', edited by Laird Addis, Greg Jesson, and Erwin Tegtmeier, Frankfurt: Ontos Verlag, 2007.
* ''Fostering the Ontological Turn: Gustav Bergmann (1906–1987), ''edited by Rosaria Egidi and Guido Bonino, Frankfurt: Ontos Verlag, 2008.
* ''Gustav Bergmann: Phenomenological Realism and Dialectical Ontology, ''edited by Bruno Langlet and Jean-Maurice Monnoyer, Frankfurt: Ontos Verlag, 2009.
* ''The Ontological Turn: Studies in the Philosophy of Gustav Bergmann,'' edited by Moltke Gram and Elmer Klemke, Iowa City: University of Iowa Press, 1974.
* ''The Positivist and the Ontologist: Bergmann, Carnap, and Logical Realism, ''by Herbert Hochberg, Amsterdam: Rodopi, 2001.
External links
Bergmann archives
Bergmann pictures, biography, bibliography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bergmann, Gustav
1906 births
1987 deaths
20th-century American lawyers
20th-century American philosophers
20th-century American male writers
20th-century American non-fiction writers
20th-century Austrian lawyers
American male non-fiction writers
Jewish emigrants from Austria after the Anschluss to the United States
Analytic philosophers
Austrian Jews
Austrian male writers
20th-century Austrian philosophers
Jewish American academics
Jewish philosophers
Linguistic turn
Ontologists
Philosophers from Iowa
Philosophers of science
University of Iowa faculty
University of Vienna alumni
Vienna Circle
Writers from Vienna