Julian Baggini Explained

Julian Baggini
Birth Place:Folkestone, Kent, England
Alma Mater:University of Reading (BA)
University College London (PhD)
Occupation:Philosopher, writer

Julian Baggini (pronounced as /it/; born 1968) is an English philosopher, journalist and the author of over 20 books about philosophy written for a general audience. He is co-founder of The Philosophers' Magazine[1] and has written for numerous international newspapers and magazines. In addition to writing on the subject of philosophy he has also written books on atheism, secularism and the nature of national identity. He is a patron of Humanists UK, an organization promoting secular humanism.

Education

Baggini was born in 1968 in Folkestone, the child of an Italian immigrant father and English mother. He grew up in Kent and was educated at the Harvey Grammar School, Folkestone, from 1980 until 1987.[2] He later attended Reading University and gained a bachelor's degree in philosophy in 1990.[3]

In 1996 he was awarded a PhD from University College London for a thesis on the philosophy of personal identity.[4] [5]

Baggini is an honorary graduate and honorary research fellow of the University of Kent's department of philosophy.

Career

In 1997 Baggini co-founded The Philosophers' Magazine with Jeremy Stangroom.In 1999 he was a founder of the Humanist Philosophers' Group, then part of the British Humanists Association. He is also a patron of Humanists UK.[6]

In 2009 Baggini was philosopher-in-residence at Wellington College, a public school in Berkshire.[7] In 2012 he was also commissioned by the National Trust to be the philosopher-in-residence for the White Cliffs of Dover where he was required to reflect on the chalk cliffs and their significance to the national identity.[8]

Baggini is a regular columnist for The Guardian newspaper,[9] Prospect magazine,[10] Financial Times and a columnist and book reviewer for The Wall Street Journal.[11] He has also written for New Humanist magazine, The Week, New Statesman, New York Times and Literary Review.

In addition to writing many books about the history and common themes of philosophy, he has also written more generally about the philosophy of food and the nature of 'Englishness'.[12] He speaks regularly at conferences and schools and has frequently spoken out about living without religion, against the teaching in schools of creationism, a loss of reason, which he asserts is "an enemy of mystery and ambiguity,"[13] and the benefits of secular education.

His 2018 book, How The World Thinks: A Global History Of Philosophy received a warm critical reception, with The Scotsman describing it as "ingenious and open-hearted"[14] and the Financial Times a "bold, fascinating book".[15]

In 2019 Baggini was named academic director of the Royal Institute of Philosophy.[16]

He is a member of the British trade union the Society of Authors and also appears in two novels by Alexander McCall Smith in The Sunday Philosophy Club Series.

Works

External links

Notes and References

  1. News: Profile: Julian Baggini. BBC. 16 March 2012. 2009-03-03.
  2. Web site: Mesure . Susie . Julian Baggini: Eat, think, and be merry - the ethics of food . The Independent . 20 March 2019. 2014-02-02 .
  3. Web site: Alumni and Supporters . University of Reading . 20 March 2019.
  4. Web site: Julian Baggini. davidhigham. 30 October 2015.
  5. Web site: 1990 - 1999. UCL. 30 October 2015.
  6. Web site: Dr. Julian Baggini Journalist, editor of The Philosophers' Magazine, and Patron of Humanists UK . Humanists UK . 20 March 2019.
  7. News: Thinking lessons to recapture lost education . The Telegraph . 20 March 2019. 2009-04-18 .
  8. News: Kennedy . Maev . There'll be blue-sky thinking over the white cliffs of Dover . The Guardian . 20 March 2019. 2012-08-19 .
  9. Web site: Profile: Julian Baggini . The Guardian . 20 March 2019.
  10. Web site: Articles by Julian Baggini . Prospect magazine . 20 March 2019.
  11. Web site: Julian Baggini . Muck Rack . 20 March 2019.
  12. News: Manzoor . Sarfraz . We're all English now . The Guardian . 20 March 2019. 2007-03-10 .
  13. . . The Edge of Reason: A Rational Skeptic in an Irrational World . Skeptical Inquirer . January 2017 . 41 . 1 . 60.
  14. Web site: Kelly . Stuart . Book review: How The World Thinks, by Julian Baggini . The Scotsman . 4 October 2018 . 20 March 2019.
  15. News: O’Grady . Jane . How the World Thinks by Julian Baggini — home truths . Financial Times . 14 December 2018 . 20 March 2019.
  16. Web site: Julian Baggini appointed academic director of the Royal Institute of Philosophy . University of Kent . 20 March 2019.

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