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Birth
Willard Van Orman Quine is born in Akron, Ohio. -
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Education
Oberlin College, Ohio; B.A, major in Mathematics with honors reading in mathematical philosophy.
Harvard University; Ph.D. in Philosophy, dissertation on Whitehead and Russell’s Principia Mathematica. -
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Professional Works
Throughout the course of his life Quine published over 300 pieces of work including papers, books, lectures, and essays. -
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Teaching the Next Generations
held teaching positions at Harvard, first as Faculty Instructor, then as Associate Professor (1941) and then as Professor (1948). -
Philosophy and Works
Quine did not have any major philosophical changes over the course of his life, which he called "naturalism." His view on science can be described as a "set of reflections on the nature of science that is pursued with the same empirical spirit that animates scientific inquiry." Quine’s philosophy should be seen as an attempt to understand science from within the resources of science itself. Quine was often thought of as a negative philosopher due to his views. -
Philosophy and Works cont.
In Quine’s view, philosophers can do no better than to adopt the standpoint of the best available knowledge. He states, “In our account of how science might be acquired we do not try to justify science by some prior and firmer philosophy, but neither are we to maintain less than scientific standards. Evidence must regularly be sought in external objects, out where observers can jointly observe it….” -
Philosophy and Works cont.
Quine has had numerous influences on contemporary metaphysics. He coined the terms "abstract object" and "Plato's beard" to refer to the problem of empty name.
In mathematics, Quine and his Harvard colleague Hilary Putnam developed the "Quine–Putnam indispensability thesis," an argument for the reality of mathematical entities. -
Video of Quine
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Death
Died in Boston, MA -
References
Hylton, Peter and Gary Kemp, "Willard Van Orman Quine", The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Spring 2020 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.), https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/spr2020/entries/quine/> Sinclair, Robert. “Willard Van Orman Quine: Philosophy of Science.” Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy, iep.utm.edu/quine-sc/.
