Bertrand Russell
1872 – 1970 British philosopher, mathematician
The philosopher and logician who was also a leading public conscience.
- Religion
- A prominent atheist and rationalist, author of the essay Why I Am Not a Christian.
- Affiliations
- Fellow of the Royal Society; Nobel laureate in literature. No secret society.
Russell tried to ground all mathematics in logic in the monumental Principia Mathematica, co-written with Whitehead. He helped found analytic philosophy and wrote clearly for the public on science, ethics, and society. A lifelong campaigner, he was jailed for pacifism and led the movement against nuclear weapons.
Connections
- mentor of Ludwig Wittgenstein — Russell recognized his genius and mentored him at Cambridge.
- student of Ludwig Wittgenstein — Wittgenstein studied under him at Cambridge before surpassing him.
In the timeline
- 1910 Russell and Whitehead publish Principia Mathematica mentioned
- 1920 Bertrand Russell takes a chair at the University of Peking, 1920 central figure