I had a birthday recently, and my parents went shopping in an antique and rare book store, and got me the two volumes of Brand Blanshard's The Nature of Thought. I immediately read through the first book on perception, and was seriously impressed, perhaps because I've always been a closet fan of F.H. Bradley and the British Hegelians, and it's quite clear that Blanshard was as well. However, I don't really know anything about Blanshard outside of these two volumes, or really anything that was going on in American philosophy at the time outside of pragmatism and positivism, neither of which seems to fit with what Blanshard is doing. So my question is, given that I'm really enjoying The Nature of Thought, is there anything else by Blanshard or related philosophers that you think I might enjoy? Also, are there any philosphers today who've been influenced by Blanshard?
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Chris, I highly recommend Blanshard's Reason and Analysis, which is one of my favorite philosophy books.
Me! I love Bradley! "My station and its duties" is a seminal essay on socil construction, race and ethics, not to mention precursing a number of social evolutionisms. And I have read one or two Blanshards in my time. I'll have to go find this now, you bastard.
Blanshard published his Gifford Lectures, Reason and Belief and Reason and Goodness. I've read the latter, which I didn't like at all; but that was a long time ago, and I can't even quite recall why I didn't like it.
I'm told that the best crash course for those interested in getting an introduction to Blanshard's work is The Uses of a Liberal Education, followed by Reason and Analysis (which is, to a great extent, an attack on positivism).
Blanshard was one of the first philosophers I read, and still one of my favorites. You should check out "The Philosophy of Brand Blanshard", which contains essays criticizing his work and his personal replys to each. It also has a nice autobiography. There aren't really any professional philosophers I know of who were influenced by him, but Scott Ryan is a libertarian thinker/non-professional philosopher who coniders himself a Blanshardian, and you can find his website here: http://home.neo.rr.com/jsryan/
His writings are philosophical and political, they don't deal with any scientific psychology. He's also an objective idealist, though, so if you're a fan of Bradly and the British idealists I think you'll ewnjoy his work. Hope this helps.