Helen Mary Warnock, Baroness Warnock, (née Wilson; 14 April 1924 – 20 March 2019) was an English philosopher of
morality
Morality () is the categorization of intentions, Decision-making, decisions and Social actions, actions into those that are ''proper'', or ''right'', and those that are ''improper'', or ''wrong''. Morality can be a body of standards or principle ...
,
education
Education is the transmission of knowledge and skills and the development of character traits. Formal education occurs within a structured institutional framework, such as public schools, following a curriculum. Non-formal education als ...
, and
mind
The mind is that which thinks, feels, perceives, imagines, remembers, and wills. It covers the totality of mental phenomena, including both conscious processes, through which an individual is aware of external and internal circumstances ...
, and a writer on
existentialism
Existentialism is a family of philosophical views and inquiry that explore the human individual's struggle to lead an authentic life despite the apparent absurdity or incomprehensibility of existence. In examining meaning, purpose, and valu ...
. She is best known for chairing an inquiry whose report formed the basis of the
Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990
The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990 (c. 37) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It created the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority which is in charge of human embryo research, along with monitoring and licensing ...
. She served as
Mistress of
Girton College, Cambridge from 1984 to 1991.
Early life and education
Warnock was born Helen Mary Wilson on 14 April 1924 in
Winchester
Winchester (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in Hampshire, England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government Districts of England, district, at the western end of the South Downs N ...
, England, and was the youngest of seven children.
Her mother Ethel was the daughter of the successful banker and financier
Felix Schuster.
Her father Archibald Edward Wilson (1875–1923) was a housemaster and German teacher at
Winchester College
Winchester College is an English Public school (United Kingdom), public school (a long-established fee-charging boarding school for pupils aged 13–18) with some provision for day school, day attendees, in Winchester, Hampshire, England. It wa ...
who died from
diphtheria
Diphtheria is an infection caused by the bacteria, bacterium ''Corynebacterium diphtheriae''. Most infections are asymptomatic or have a mild Course (medicine), clinical course, but in some outbreaks, the mortality rate approaches 10%. Signs a ...
seven months before her birth.
[ Her mother did not marry again.]
Warnock was brought up by her mother and a nanny
A nanny is a person who provides child care. Typically, this care is given within the children's family setting. Throughout history, nannies were usually servants in large households and reported directly to the lady of the house. Today, modern ...
. She never knew her eldest brother, Malcolm (1907–1969), who had autism
Autism, also known as autism spectrum disorder (ASD), is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by differences or difficulties in social communication and interaction, a preference for predictability and routine, sensory processing d ...
and was cared for in a nursing home, spending his last days in a Dorset
Dorset ( ; Archaism, archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Somerset to the north-west, Wiltshire to the north and the north-east, Hampshire to the east, t ...
hospital. Another brother died when very young. Her other brother, Duncan Wilson (1911–1983), was a British diplomat who became Ambassador to the Soviet Union before taking up an appointment as master of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge. When Warnock was seven months old the family moved to Kelso House, a three-floor Victorian house, now the music centre at Peter Symonds College. She and her sister Stefana were cared for primarily by the family nanny. Warnock was educated as a boarder at St Swithun's School, Winchester, followed by Prior's Field School in the town of Guildford
Guildford () is a town in west Surrey, England, around south-west of central London. As of the 2011 census, the town has a population of about 77,000 and is the seat of the wider Borough of Guildford, which had around inhabitants in . The nam ...
in Surrey.
Warnock said that when she was a child she was embarrassed by her mother, who looked different from most people, often by wearing long flowing dark red clothes and walking with turned out feet. However, when Warnock was about 15 years old, she began to admire her mother's eccentricity
Eccentricity or eccentric may refer to:
* Eccentricity (behavior), odd behavior on the part of a person, as opposed to being "normal"
Mathematics, science and technology Mathematics
* Off-Centre (geometry), center, in geometry
* Eccentricity (g ...
and independent thinking.
The family's inherited wealth offered Warnock a privileged education; starting in 1942 she studied classics at Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford
Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town.
The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...
. Her studies were interrupted during the war whilst she taught for two years at Sherborne School for Girls in Dorset. She returned to Oxford and graduated in 1948.
Career
Philosophy
From 1949–66, Warnock was a fellow and tutor in philosophy at St Hugh's College, Oxford
St Hugh's College is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford. It is located on a site on St Margaret's Road, to the north of the city centre. It was founded in 1886 by Elizabeth Wordsworth as a ...
. In addition to her husband Geoffrey Warnock, then a fellow of Magdalen College, her circle during this period included the philosophers Isaiah Berlin
Sir Isaiah Berlin (6 June 1909 – 5 November 1997) was a Russian-British social and political theorist, philosopher, and historian of ideas. Although he became increasingly averse to writing for publication, his improvised lectures and talks ...
, Stuart Hampshire, David Pears and Peter Strawson, as well the authors Kingsley Amis
Sir Kingsley William Amis (16 April 1922 – 22 October 1995) was an English novelist, poet, critic and teacher. He wrote more than 20 novels, six volumes of poetry, a memoir, short stories, radio and television scripts, and works of social crit ...
and David Cecil. She participated in radio debates on philosophy broadcast on the Third Programme. She was invited to write on contemporary ethics for a series published by Oxford University Press
Oxford University Press (OUP) is the publishing house of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world. Its first book was printed in Oxford in 1478, with the Press officially granted the legal right to print books ...
, which led her to study Sartre and Existentialism
Existentialism is a family of philosophical views and inquiry that explore the human individual's struggle to lead an authentic life despite the apparent absurdity or incomprehensibility of existence. In examining meaning, purpose, and valu ...
, resulting in three books published between 1963 and 1970.
She was Talbot Research Fellow at Lady Margaret Hall from 1972 until 1976. She published a book entitled ''Imagination'' in 1976. From 1976–84, she was a senior research fellow at St Hugh's College, and was made an honorary fellow of the college in 1985. She served as mistress of Girton College, Cambridge from 1984 to 1991. She retired in 1992, but continued to serve on public committees and to write and edit books, including ''The Uses of Philosophy'' (1992), ''Imagination and Time'' (1994) and ''An Intelligent Person's Guide to Ethics'' (1998). She delivered the Gifford Lectures, entitled "Imagination and Understanding," at the University of Glasgow
The University of Glasgow (abbreviated as ''Glas.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals; ) is a Public university, public research university in Glasgow, Scotland. Founded by papal bull in , it is the List of oldest universities in continuous ...
in 1992. These lectures would form some of the chapters of her ''Imagination and Time'' (1994). In 2000, she was a visiting professor of rhetoric
Rhetoric is the art of persuasion. It is one of the three ancient arts of discourse ( trivium) along with grammar and logic/ dialectic. As an academic discipline within the humanities, rhetoric aims to study the techniques that speakers or w ...
at Gresham College, London.
Warnock wrote extensively on ethics, existentialism
Existentialism is a family of philosophical views and inquiry that explore the human individual's struggle to lead an authentic life despite the apparent absurdity or incomprehensibility of existence. In examining meaning, purpose, and valu ...
, and philosophy of mind
Philosophy of mind is a branch of philosophy that deals with the nature of the mind and its relation to the Body (biology), body and the Reality, external world.
The mind–body problem is a paradigmatic issue in philosophy of mind, although a ...
.
Education
In the early 1960s, whilst still teaching at St Hugh's College, Warnock took a seat on the Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire ( ; abbreviated ''Oxon'') is a ceremonial county in South East England. The county is bordered by Northamptonshire and Warwickshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the east, Berkshire to the south, and Wiltshire and Glouceste ...
Local Education Authority
Local education authorities (LEAs) were defined in England and Wales as the local councils responsible for education within their jurisdictions. The term was introduced by the Education Act 1902, which transferred education powers from school bo ...
. From 1966 to 1972, she was Headmistress at the Oxford High School for Girls, giving up the position when her husband was appointed principal of Hertford College, Oxford
Hertford College ( ), previously known as Magdalen Hall, is a colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. It is located on Catte Street in the centre of Oxford, directly opposite the main ga ...
. In the late 1970s, she published three books on the topic of education. In the 1980s and 1990s, she wrote a column for the '' Times Educational Supplement'', as well as a pamphlet "Universities: Knowing Our Minds", and gave the Richard Dimbleby Lecture in 1985 on the topic, "Teacher Teach Thyself".
Broadcasting
Warnock was a member of the Independent Broadcasting Authority from 1972 to 1983. In 1980, she was considered for the post of Chair of the Board of Governors of the BBC.
Public policy
Because of her background as an educationalist, Warnock was appointed in 1974 to chair a UK inquiry on special education
Special education (also known as special-needs education, aided education, alternative provision, exceptional student education, special ed., SDC, and SPED) is the practice of educating students in a way that accommodates their individual di ...
. Her report, published in 1978, brought radical change in the field, by placing emphasis on the teaching of learning-disabled children in mainstream schools and introducing a system of " statementing" children in order for them to gain entitlement to special educational support. Warnock subsequently expressed dissatisfaction with the system that she helped to create, calling it "appalling" because of the expense of its administration and its tendency to deny support to mildly disadvantaged children. She recommended the establishment of a new inquiry.
From 1979–84, she sat on a Royal Commission
A royal commission is a major ad-hoc formal public inquiry into a defined issue in some monarchies. They have been held in the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Norway, Malaysia, Mauritius and Saudi Arabia. In republics an equi ...
on environmental pollution. From 1982–84, she chaired the Committee of Inquiry into Human Fertilisation and Embryology. Her report on this occasion gave rise to the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990
The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990 (c. 37) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It created the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority which is in charge of human embryo research, along with monitoring and licensing ...
, which governs human fertility treatment and experiments using human embryos. Its effect has been to require licensing for procedures such as in vitro fertilisation
In vitro fertilisation (IVF) is a process of fertilisation in which an ovum, egg is combined with spermatozoon, sperm in vitro ("in glass"). The process involves monitoring and stimulating the Ovulation cycle, ovulatory process, then removing ...
and to ban research using human embryos more than 14 days old. According to Dame Susan Leather, a former chair of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority, "perhaps the greatest achievement of the Warnock committee is that it managed to get an ethical consensus that people understood as well as shared".
From 1984 to 1989, Warnock chaired a Home Office
The Home Office (HO), also known (especially in official papers and when referred to in Parliament) as the Home Department, is the United Kingdom's interior ministry. It is responsible for public safety and policing, border security, immigr ...
Committee on animal experimentation; she was a member of the Government advisory panel on spoliation from 1998. In 2008, Warnock, a committed advocate of euthanasia
Euthanasia (from : + ) is the practice of intentionally ending life to eliminate pain and suffering.
Different countries have different Legality of euthanasia, euthanasia laws. The British House of Lords Select committee (United Kingdom), se ...
, caused controversy with an opinion that people with dementia
Dementia is a syndrome associated with many neurodegenerative diseases, characterized by a general decline in cognitive abilities that affects a person's ability to perform activities of daily living, everyday activities. This typically invo ...
should be allowed to elect to die if they felt they were "a burden to their family or the state". Aged 90, Warnock took part enthusiastically in a review of her public life as documented by BBC Sound Archives (12 July 2014).
Charity appointments
Warnock was the President of Listening Books, a charity providing audiobooks for people who struggle to read due to an illness, disability, learning difficulty or mental health issue. She was a patron of The Iris Project, a charity that promotes the teaching of classics.
Appointments and honours
In the 1984 New Year Honours, she was appointed a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE). Warnock was created a life peer
In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the peerage whose titles cannot be inherited, in contrast to hereditary peers. Life peers are appointed by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister. With the exception of the D ...
on 6 February 1985, taking the title Baroness Warnock, of Weeke, in the City of Winchester
Winchester (), or the City of Winchester, is a Non-metropolitan district, local government district with City status in the United Kingdom, city status in Hampshire, England.
The district is named after its main settlement of Winchester, which ...
. She sat in the House of Lords
The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the lower house, the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. One of the oldest ext ...
as a crossbencher until her retirement from the House on 1 June 2015. Warnock was appointed a member of the Order of the Companions of Honour
The Order of the Companions of Honour is an Order (distinction), order of the Commonwealth realms. It was founded on 4 June 1917 by King George V as a reward for outstanding achievements. It was founded on the same date as the Order of the Brit ...
(CH) in the 2017 New Year Honours for services to charity and to children with special education needs.
Warnock was elected an honorary Fellow of the British Academy
Fellowship of the British Academy (post-nominal letters FBA) is an award granted by the British Academy to leading academics for their distinction in the humanities and social sciences. The categories are:
# Fellows – scholars resident in t ...
(FBA) in 2000 and an Honorary Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences (FMedSci) in 2011. She was awarded an honorary D.Litt. degree by the University of Bath
The University of Bath is a public research university in Bath, England. Bath received its royal charter in 1966 as Bath University of Technology, along with a number of other institutions following the Robbins Report. Like the University ...
in 1987. She was made an Honorary Fellow of Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford
Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town.
The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...
in 1984, and of Hertford College, Oxford
Hertford College ( ), previously known as Magdalen Hall, is a colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. It is located on Catte Street in the centre of Oxford, directly opposite the main ga ...
in 1997.
In 2018, she was named as one of the TES ten most influential people in education, in recognition of her work on special educational needs. That same year, she was awarded the 2018 Dan David Prize for her work in bioethics.
Personal life
Warnock married Geoffrey Warnock, later vice-chancellor of Oxford University
The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the second-oldest continuously operating u ...
, in 1949. They had two sons and three daughters; he died in 1995. She died at her home in London on 20 March 2019.
She was often described as an "atheist
Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no ...
Anglican
Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...
".
Works
As chair of committees of inquiry:
* The Warnock Report (1978)
''Special Educational Needs''
London: HMSO
The Office of Public Sector Information (OPSI) is the body responsible for the operation of His Majesty's Stationery Office (HMSO) and of other public information services of the United Kingdom. The OPSI is part of the National Archives of the U ...
(report by the Committee of Enquiry into the Education of Handicapped Children and Young People)
* The Warnock Report (1984)
''Report of the Committee of Enquiry into Human Fertilisation and Embryology''
London: HMSO
The Office of Public Sector Information (OPSI) is the body responsible for the operation of His Majesty's Stationery Office (HMSO) and of other public information services of the United Kingdom. The OPSI is part of the National Archives of the U ...
* Warnock, Mary (1978). ''Meeting Special Educational Needs: A brief guide by Mrs Mary Warnock to the report of the Committee of Enquiry into Education of Handicapped Children and Young People''. London: HMSO
The Office of Public Sector Information (OPSI) is the body responsible for the operation of His Majesty's Stationery Office (HMSO) and of other public information services of the United Kingdom. The OPSI is part of the National Archives of the U ...
As author:
* '' Ethics Since 1900'' (Oxford University Press, 1960);
* ''The Philosophy of Sartre'' (Hutchinson University Press, 1963)
* '' Existentialist Ethics'' (London: Palgrave Macmillan, New York: Springer, 1967)
* ''Existentialism
Existentialism is a family of philosophical views and inquiry that explore the human individual's struggle to lead an authentic life despite the apparent absurdity or incomprehensibility of existence. In examining meaning, purpose, and valu ...
'' (Oxford Paperbacks, 1970)
* ''Imagination'' (1976)
* '' Schools of Thought'' (Faber and Faber, 1977);
* ''Memory
Memory is the faculty of the mind by which data or information is encoded, stored, and retrieved when needed. It is the retention of information over time for the purpose of influencing future action. If past events could not be remembe ...
'' (1987)
* '' The Uses of Philosophy'' (Blackwell, 1992)
* ''Imagination and Time'' (Blackwell Publishers, 1994)
* ''An Intelligent Person's Guide to Ethics'' (1998);
* '' Mary Warnock: A Memoir – People and Places'' (Duckworth, 2001); ,
* '' Making Babies: Is There a Right To Have Children?'' (2001)
* ''Nature and Mortality: Recollections of a Philosopher in Public Life'' (2004);
* ''Easeful Death'', with Elisabeth MacDonald (OUP, 2008)
* ''Dishonest to God: On Keeping Religion Out of Politics'' (Continuum, 2010);
* ''Critical Reflections on Ownership'' (Edward Elgar, 2015);
As editor:
* ''Sartre: A Collection of Critical Essays'' (1971)
* '' Women Philosophers'', London, J. M. Dent (1996)
* ''Art for All?: Their Policies and Our Culture'' (2000; with Mark Wallinger)
See also
* Visiting Gresham Professors
References
Further reading
*
External links
Mary Warnock's Top Ten Philosophy Books
*'' Philosophy Bites'' interviews o
Philosophy and Public Life
and o
Sartre's Existentialism
*
Baroness Warnock obituary
' in the '' Sunday Times'' (Archived)
*
Obituary: Baroness Warnock
' by Andrew McKie for '' The Herald'
(Archived)
*
Baroness Mary Warnock, LMH alumna (1924-2019)
' Lady Margaret Hall death notice.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Warnock, Mary
1924 births
English people of Scottish descent
People from Winchester
20th-century British philosophers
21st-century British philosophers
Alumni of Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford
British ethicists
Crossbench life peers
Dames Commander of the Order of the British Empire
Fellows of the British Academy
2019 deaths
Mistresses of Girton College, Cambridge
People educated at St Swithun's School, Winchester
People educated at Prior's Field School
Philosophers of mind
British women philosophers
Members of the Order of the Companions of Honour
Wives of knights