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This is the title graphic. I borrowed it from another nice site.

William James, 1892

 


"It has sometimes crossed my mind that James wanted to be a poet and an artist, and that there lay in him, beneath the ocean of metaphysics, a lost Atlantis of fine arts: and that he really hated philosophy and all its works, and pursued them only as Hercules might spin or as a prince in a fairy tale sorts seeds for an evil dragon, or as anyone might patiently do some careful work for which he had no aptitude."

John J. Chapman, a friend of William James

Essays, excerpts, letters, and reviews

  • "Address at the Annual Meeting of the New England Anti-Imperialist League." Boston: New England Anti-Imperialist League, 1903.
  • "Are We Automata?" 1872, Mind, 4, 1-22.
    • Response to Huxley's "On the Hypothesis that Animals Are Automata, and Its History", 1874 essay.
  • "The Chicago School," 1904, Psychological Bulletin, 1, 1-5. Also here.
  • "The Consciousness of Lost Limbs," 1887, Proceedings of the American Society for Psychical Research, 1, 249-258.
  • "Does Consciousness Exist?" 1904, Journal of Philosophy, Psychology, and Scientific Methods, 1, 477-491. Mirror.
  • "The Energies of Men." 1907, Science, N.S. 25 (No. 635), 321-332. [James' Presidential Address to the American Philosophical Association.] Mirror.
  • "The Gospel of Relaxation" - Chapter 1 of Talks to Students on Some of Life's Ideals.
  • "Great Men, Great Thoughts, and the Environment" 1880, Atlantic Monthly, 46(276), 441-459. From Cornell University Library.
    • Mirror here. This paper was initially a lecture given before the Harvard Natural History Society. 1880, October.
    • Notes from Prof. J. Wesley Robbins of Indiana U South Bend.
  • "The Hidden Self." 1890, Scribner's Magazine, 7(3). From Cornell University Library.
  • "Human Immortality: Two Supposed Objections to the Doctrine." the Ingersall Lecture, 1897. Click on link at top of page.
  • "Human Immortality." Also here.
  • "The Moral Equivalent of War." Speech given at Stanford University, 1906. Another copy here.
  • "On a Certain Blindness in Human Beings" - Chapter 2 of Talks to Students on Some of Life's Ideals.
  • "Oration upon the unveiling of the monument to Robert Gould Shaw", Boston Music Hall, May 31, 1987.
  • "The Ph.D. Octopus," first published in the Harvard Monthly, March 1903 .
  • "The Philippine Tangle," Boston Evening Transcript (March 1, 1899).
  • "Pluralism, Pragmatism, and Instrumental Truth", 1907, from A Pluralistic Universe and Pragmatism.
  • "Remarks at the Peace Banquet," speech given on the closing day of the World Peace Congress, 7 October 1904. Also here and here.
  • "Secretary Taft a Biased Judge," Boston Transcript (May 2, 1904).
  • "Social Value of the College-Bred" Adress delivered November, 1907.
  • Some Problems in Philosophy, 1911, with review by Doug Renselle.
  • "The Stream of Consciousness," 1892, Psychology (chapter XI). Cleveland & New York, World. Mirror.
  • "Subjective Effects of Nitrous Oxide" - essay by James.
  • "What is an Emotion?" 1884, Mind, 9, 188-205. Mirror.
  • "What is an Instinct?" 1887, Scribner's Magazine, 1(3), 355-366. From Cornell University Library.
  • "What Makes a Life Significant?" - Chapter 3 of Talks to Students on Some of Life's Ideals.
  • "What the Will Effects." 1888, Scribner's Magazine, 3(2), 240-250. From Cornell University Library.
  • "A World of Pure Experience," 1904, Journal of Phil., Psych., and Scientific Methods, 1, 533-543, 561-570. Mirror.
  • James's review of "The Anaesthetic Revelation and the Gist of Philosophy," Atlantic Monthly, November, 1874.
  • Familiar Letters of William James published by the Atlantic Monthly
    • Volume I - early correspondence.
    • Volume II - written prior to publication of the Principles of Psychology.Go to top of page
    • Volume III - written during the last ten years of James's life.

From Talks to Teachers

Preface
Chapter 1 - Psychology and the Teaching Art
Chapter 2 - The Stream of Consciousness
Chapter 3 - The Child as a Behaving Organism
Chapter 4 - Education and Behavior
Chapter 5 - The Necessity of Reactions
Chapter 6 - Native Reactions and Acquired Reactions
Chapter 7 - What the Native Reactions Are 		Chapter   8 - The Laws of Habit
Chapter   9 - The Association of Ideas
Chapter 10 - Interest
Chapter 11 - Attention
Chapter 12 - Memory
Chapter 13 - The Acquisition of Ideas
Chapter 14 - Apperception
Chapter 15 - The Will

  • Excerpts and highlights - chapter by chapter.
  • On the role that psychology plays in education.
  • "The Gospel of Relaxation" - Chapter 1 of Talks to Students on Some of Life's Ideals.
  • "On a Certain Blindness in Human Beings" - Chapter 2 of Talks to Students on Some of Life's Ideals.
  • "What Makes a Life Significant?" - Chapter 3 of Talks to Students on Some of Life's Ideals.
  • Four of the talks were published in the Atlantic Monthly in 1899. Cornell University provides scans of the original lectures on
    • Psychology and the Teaching Art. Vol 83(496), pp. 155-162. February 1899.
    • Education and Behavior. Vol 83(497), pp. 320-330. March 1899.
    • Interest and Attention. Vol 83(498), pp. 510-518. April 1899.
    • The Will. Vol 83(499), pp. 617-626. May 1899.
  • Softcover edition of Talks to Teachers back in print!!
 

The Principles of Psychology

Professor Christopher Green, of York University, has created a Classics in the History of Psychology internet resource site that includes the full text of The Principles of Psychology. The Classics Site has a mirror at Arizona State University that also houses The Principles.

  • Introduction to The Principles, by Robert Wozniak. Mirror here.
    • Prof. Wozniak's Classics in Psychology: Historial Essays
  • Overview from the Thoemmes Press.
  • Commentary on The Stream of Consciousness, by Dr. C. George Boeree.
  • James defines habit in the Manufacturer and Builder, Vol. 19(5), p. 116, May 1887.
  • William James's Narrative of Habit, by Renee Tursi
  • See the Atlantic Monthly's review of the book, published April 1891, Vo. 67(402). From Cornell University Library.
VOLUME 1

Chapter 1 - The Scope of Psychology.
Chapter 2 - The Functions of the Brain.
Chapter 3 - Conditions of Brain Activity.
Chapter 4 - Habit.
Chapter 5 - The Automaton Theory.
Chapter 6 - The Mind-Stuff Theory.
Chapter 7 - Methods/Snares of Psychology .
Chapter 8 - Minds to Other Things. 		Chapter 9 - The Stream of Thought.
Chapter 10 - The Consciousness of Self.
Chapter 11 - Attention.
Chapter 12 - Conception.
Chapter 13 - Discrimination&Comparison.
Chapter 14 - Association.
Chapter 15 - The Perception of Time.
Chapter 16 - Memory.

VOLUME 2

Chapter 17 - Sensation.
Chapter 18 - Imagination.
Chapter 19 - The Perception of 'Things.'
Chapter 20 - The Perception of Space.
Chapter 21 - The Perception of Reality.
Chapter 22 - Reasoning. 		Chapter 23 - The Production of Movement.
Chapter 24 - Instinct.
Chapter 25 - The emotions.
Chapter 26 - Will.
Chapter 27 - Hypnotism.
Chapter 28 - Necessary Truths/Experience.


Pragmatism: A New Name for Some Old Ways of Thinking 

From the Mead Project at Brock University. Transcribed by Lloyd Gordon Ward and Robert Throop. Table of Contents.

  • Author's Preface.
  • Lecture One: The Present Dilemma in Philosophy.
  • Lecture Two: What Pragmatism Means. Also here.
  • Lecture Three: Some Metaphysical Problems Pragmatically Considered.
  • Lecture Four: The One and the Many.
  • Lecture Five: Pragmatism and Common Sense.
  • Lecture Six: Pragmatism's Conception of Truth.
  • Lecture Seven: Pragmatism and Humanism.
  • Lecture Eight: Pragmatism and Religion.
  • First 5 chapters, from Alan Cook.
About Pragmatism
  • The Pragmatism Cybrary - the most authorative site on this subject.
  • What Pragmatism Ain't, delightful essay by Philip Nobel. Also here.
  • American Pragmatism, from the Radical Academy.
  • Pragmatism, excellent entry from the Catholic Encyclopedia.
  • Notes on the lecture and Essays on Pragmatic Humanism from Prof. J. Wesley Robbins.
  • Swedenborgian Roots of American Pragmatism:The Case of D. T. Suzuki, by Eugene Taylor.
  • Early American Pragmatism, by Prof. Paul Redding, University of Sydney. Includes excellent links.
  • What is Pragmatism?, from Tucker's Consciousness Page.
  • Alex Scott on James's Pragmatism.
  • Questions and Commentary from Prof. William O'Meara of James Madison University.
  • You can purchase audiotapes of Prof. James Campbell's William James, Charles Pierce, and American Pragmatism from Knowledge Products.

The Meaning of Truth

From the Mead Project at Brock University. Transcribed by Lloyd Gordon Ward and Robert Throop. Table of Contents.

Preface
Chapter 1 - The Function of Cognition
Chapter 2 - The Tigers of India
Chapter 3 - Humanism and Truth
Chapter 4 - Relation between Knower and Known
Chapter 5 - The Essence of Humanism
Chapter 6 - A Word More about Truth
Chapter 7 - Professor Pratt on Truth 		Chapter   8 - Truth and its Misunderstandings
Chapter   9 - The Meaning of the Word Truth
Chapter 10 - The Existence of Julius Caesar
Chapter 11 - The Absolute and the Strenous Life
Chapter 12 - Professor Hébert on Pragmatism
Chapter 13 - Abstractionism and 'Relativismus'
Chapter 14 - Two English Critics
Chapter 15 - A Dialogue


The Will to Believe

  • Complete essay from Marc Fonda.
  • Complete essay from James Madison University.
  • The Ethics of Belief, edited by A. J. Burger (also here), includes
    • full text of "The Will to Believe"
    • essay by William Clifford (also here and here)
    • and here are notes on Clifford and James, and
    • commentary by Burger.
  • Teaching James's "The Will to Believe," by Prof. Guy Axtell, University of Nevada, Reno.
  • Notes from Prof. Robbins, Indiana University.
  • Notes from Prof. Browning at University of Texas, Austin.
  • Notes from Princeton philosophy course.
  • "What is This Place?" William James and Religious Certainty, by Br. Tom.
  • "The Book of James: William James's lectures on religion, a century later ", by Joseph Leconte for The Heritage Foundation
  • William James: Still Salient After All These Years.Go to top of page   
  • An outline with commentary provided by Bob Corbett.
 The great man at a great time in his life.

 

Essays in Radical Empiricism

From the Mead Project at Brock University. Transcribed by Lloyd Gordon Ward and Robert Throop. Table of Contents.

Editor's Preface - Ralph Barton Perry.
Chapter 1 - Does 'Consciousness" Exist?.
Chapter 2 - A World Of Pure Experience.
Chapter 3 - The Thing and Its Relations.
Chapter 4 - How Two Minds Can Know One Thing.
Chapter 5 - Affectional Facts/Pure Experience.
Chapter 6 - The Experience of Activity. 		Chapter   7 - The Essence of Humanism.
Chapter   8 - La Nocion de Conscience (in French).
Chapter   9 - Is Radical Empiricism Solopsistic.
Chapter 10 - Mr. Pitkin's Refutation.
Chapter 11 - Humanism and Truth Once More.
Chapter 12 - Absolutism and Empiricism.

  • As a complete text file. Also here.
 

On The Varieties of Religious Experience: A Study of Human Nature

  • Full text from Psych Web by Prof. Michael Nielsen.
  • Hypertext Version from American Studies at UVA.
  • Full text from byGosh.com.
  • Full text from Against All Reason.
  • Lecture Summaries, by John Durhan.
  • A fine annotated outline by Marc Fonda.
  • Notes from Marc Fonda - Part 1 and Part 2.
  • Commentary on the Varieties, by Carol Zaleski, Smith College.
  • The Science of Religion, a lecture by Russell McNeil also from Malaspina.
  • James's Gifford Lectures on Natural Religion, delivered at Edinburgh in 1901-1902, are provided by the Council on Spiritual Practices. As with previous sites, these lectures also comprise the entire text of The Varieties of Religious Experience, but they are very nicely organized.
  • The Council on Spiritual Practices offers The William James Awards, Funding for Masters' Theses and Doctoral Dissertations on Primary Religious/Spiritual Experience.
  • A brief commentary by Sandra Stahlman.
  • Introductory lecture to the Varieties by Ian Johnston, Malaspina University.
  • You can purchase audiotapes of The Varieties from Knowledge Products.
Columbia News Video Forum. Scholars Reevaluate the Significance of William James' The Varieties of Religious Experience.

One hundred years after the publication of William James' The Varieties of Religious Experience, the Center for the Study of Science and Religion and the John Templeton Foundation brought together a group of influential scholars to reevaluate the significance of the classic work that analyzes religious experience within the context of psychology and philosophy. The link above will take you to a description of each lecture by these prominent scholars.

  • "The Varieties of Religious Experience: William James' Contributions to a Theory of Religion, delivered by Ann Taves
  • "Damned for God's Glory: William James and the Scientific Vindication of Protestant Culture, delivered by David Hollinger
  • "The Varieties of Ordinary Experience, delivered by Jerome Bruner
  • "Pragmatism and an Unseen Order in Varieties," delivered by Wayne Proudfoot

  • Also view Richard Rorty speak on the Varieties.

    • Other sites on the Net related to William James

    • William James entry from MIT Cognet (excellent site, but requires access through edu server or a subscription).
    • James site from Garth Kemerling with excellent links.
    • Episteme has fine links to philosophy-related sites. Here is the link to James.
    • Links to James sites on the Web from the Alliance for Lifelong Learning.
    • More links, these from Mythos and Logos. These pages are worth checking in case I miss something.
    • William James page from ErraticImpact.com. Check out their Philosophy Research Base.
    • William James page from the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Excellent overview.
    • European William James Project, from the Pragmatism Cybrary.
    • William James: Still Salient After All These Years.
    • Search for William James at FindArticles.com.
    • The Philosophy of William James, from The Radical Academy.
    • William James, from Genius in the Family Cameo Biography, PBS.
    • The William James Lecture Series at Harvard Divinity College.
    • Some quotes by James. And some more. No end to them. Ane here is a nice set from the Philosopher's Magazine.
    • Blurb for Jason Gary Horn's book, Mark Twain and William James.
    • Brief biographical sketch.
    • William James Award Competition, from APA Eastern Division.
    • The William James Society.
    • A bit macabre, but here is James's tombstone at the Cambridge Cemetery.

    Essays about William James

    • Biological Consciousness and the Experience of the Transcendent: William James and American Functional Psychology, by Eugene Taylor.
      • Professor Taylor's essay in Spanish.
    • "The Book of James: William James's lectures on religion, a century later", by Joseph Leconte for The Heritage Foundation
    • Mind and Body: Descartes to William James, by Robert Wozniak of Bryn Mawr.
    • "The Nitrous Oxyde Philosopher" by Dmitri Tymozko. Interesting reading.
    • Introduction to The Principles of Psychology, by Robert Wozniak. Mirror here.
    • Pure Experience, the Response to William James: An Introduction, by Eugene Taylor and Robert Wozniak.
    • A Review of James' Some Problems of Philosophy, by Doug Renselle.
    • Sartre and James on Freedom, by William O'Meara.
    • "Speaking Terms": William James on Intelligence, by Tom Murphy.
    • "What is This Place?" William James and Religious Certainty, by Tom Murphy.
    • What William James Missed: The Religious Insights of Josiah Royce, by Richard P. Mullin of Wheeling Jesuit University.
    • "Why William James Still Matters," by Charles Taylor.
    • Wilhelm Wundt and William James, by Dr. C. George Boeree. And see this commentary on The Stream of Consciousness.
    • "William James and Rudolph Steiner," by Robert McDermott.
    • William James, an obituary published in the Atlantic Monthly by James Jackson Putnam, 1910.
      • The New York Times obituary.
    • William James and Individual Spirituality - from Susan Landau at Wesleyan.
    • William James and the Tradition of American Public Philosophers, by Cushing Strout, for the Partisan Review.
    • William James on an Unseen Order, by Wayne Proudfoot, from Harvard Theological Review. Is the universe moral or unmoral?
    • William James's Narrative of Habit, by Renee Tursi, from findarticles.com.
    • William James's Selective Individualism, by James O. Pawelski, Albright College.Go to top of page
    • William James et la psychologie expérimentale, by Vincent Guillin (in French).

    Bibliographic information

    • Russell McNeil keeps a superb William James Consolidated Database at Malaspina University-College, British Columbia. It includes the Library of Congress Catalog and HTML citations, National Library of Canada Citations, the UK's COPAC citations, and tie-ins to Amazon, Blackwell's, and AAUP. One-stop bibliographic information. Visit their Great Books site.
    • Amazon list of available books about William James.
    • Here is my list of books about James (more carefully alphabetized than Amazon's). Go to top of page
    • New books about William James
      • Gerald Myers's William James: His Life and Thought just out, Yale University Press.
      • The Correspondence of William James, Volume 9, from University Press of Virginia.
      • Prof. Phil Oliver has a new book entitled William James's "Springs of Delight". It may be ordered from Amazon.com or from Barnes and Noble.
    • AddAll Book Search and Bublos.com will compare prices of new books. So will DirectTextbook.com.

    • AddAll.com will also compare prices of used books. Excellent. Nope, I don't get a commission. Just trying to be helpful.