Library
Browse our collection of first hand source material on the members of our quartet.
‘Rings and Books’ by Mary Midgley
Midgley wrote this essay in the mid-1950s for BBC radio. In her memoir The Owl of Minerva, she recalls:
“I wrote it because I had suddenly been struck by the fact that nearly all the famous philosophers whose lives we know about were lifelong bachelors…
Read MorePhilippa Foot ‘Sir’ letter
In May 1983, Philippa Foot was elected as a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. She was sent a rather grand certificate informing her of the honor. As you may notice, the certificate is addressed:...
Read MoreThen and Now
by Mary Midgley Mary Midgley Considers How What Is Called Philosophy Has Changed Since She And Her Friends First Plunged Into It Changes In World-Pictures. When we four people started studying Philosophy at Oxford in the early...
Read MoreIris Murdoch lifeline
We’ve done our best to make sure this lifeline is accurate and complete. Please let us know if you spot any errors or omissions. Jean Iris Murdoch (1919-1999) 1919 (15 July) Born in Phibsborough, Ireland, to...
Read MorePhilippa Foot lifeline
We’ve done our best to make sure this lifeline is accurate and complete. Please let us know if you spot any errors or omissions. Philippa Ruth Foot (1920-2010) 1920 (3 October) Born to Esther Cleveland and...
Read MoreMary Midgley lifeline
We’ve done our best to make sure this lifeline is accurate and complete. Please let us know if you spot any errors or omissions. Mary Beatrice Midgley (1919-2018) 1919 (13 September) Born in London to Lesley and Tom...
Read MoreElizabeth Anscombe lifeline
We’ve done our best to make sure this lifeline is accurate and complete. Please let us know if you spot any errors or omissions. Gertrude Elizabeth Margaret Anscombe (1919-2001) 1919 (18 March) Born to Gertrude...
Read MorePhilippa Foot’s response to being addressed as ‘Sir’
In May 1983, Philippa Foot was elected as a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. She was sent a rather grand certificate (click to enlarge) informing her of the honor: As you may notice, the certificate is...
Read MoreInterview with Mary Warnock
Last week Liza, Clare and I went along with Lindsay (our film-crew!), to interview Mary Warnock at her London home. We’ll be posting some sound-extracts from the interview here in the coming weeks (along with some from our...
Read MoreInterview with Mary Midgley
Clare, Luna, and I went along to interview Mary Midgley today at her home in Newcastle. We spent an incredible 90 minutes learning about life in Oxford during the 1930s and 40s, and hearing her thoughts on the contemporary lot...
Read MoreInterview with Mary Midgley
Mary Midgley has generously offered us her time on Monday, so we’re off to interview her about the Golden Age of female philosophy! We’ve got our own list of questions, but if there’s anything you think we...
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