HALDANE, (VISCOUNT RICHARD BURDON).

The Philosophy of Humanism and other Subjects.

London, John Marray, 1922. 8vo. Uncut in the original green full cloth in the original dust jacket. Letter from Haldane to "Principal Rattray" pasted on the front free end paper: "12 Nov 1922 / Dear Principal Rattray, / MERE ". Author's presentation inscription to top of half title: "Principal Rattray / from the Author / In memory of her verses to the University / College of Leicester 11 feb 1922.". Corners and capitals a bit bumped. Dust jacket with wear and some loss at extremities, especially capitals and lower part of back jacket, no loss of text anywhere. Internally very nice and clean. XIV, 302, (4, -advertisements) pp.

First edition of Haldane's important work with presentation inscription to Principal Rattray, published the year after his main and most famous work "The Reign of Relativity". In that work Haldane had propounded a theory that Einstein's theory supported the thesis that the distinction between knowledge and that which is known is a distinction within knowledge itself. "He therefore mistakenly treated Einstein's "observer" as if it were akin to Kant's "transcendental unity of apperception". "The Reign of Relativity", in consequence became a compendium of F.H. Bradley and Bernard Bosanquet, a defense of vitalism in biology continued in "The Philosophy of Humanism and other Subjects" (1922), and even a vindication of the general will. " (D.S.B. VI:26).

Robert Fleming Rattray (1886-1967) became Pastor of the Great Meeting in Leicester in 1917. "He was a strong supporter of both the adult education movement and the Lit. and Phil. and of the scheme, promoted by the Society among other organisations, to establish a University in Leicester. In early 1921 he was approached to be the planned College's first Principal and in May 1921 he was appointed as the first Principal of the Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland College (later University College, Leicester).
Rattray joined the Lit. and Phil. on his arrival in Leicester in 1917. In 1920, already well-established as a teacher and writer on philosophy, his first major contribution to the Lit. and Phil. was to assist in the setting up of a new Philosophy Section in 1920, with Rattray as its first Chairman. In its first year, 1920-21 Rattray gave a course of six lectures on "Some Fundamental Problems of Philosophy and the following year he gave a second course of eight lectures on "modern" (i.e. not classical or medieval) philosophers, covering Descartes, Spinosa, Leibnitz, Locke, Berkeley, Hume and Kant.
He remained at Leicester as Principal of the University College until 1931 when he moved to Cambridge to become Pastor of the Unitarian Memorial Chapel, and remained in Cambridge after his retirement through to his death at the age of 81." (Leicester Literary and Philosophical Society.)

Order-nr.: 50080