Biography
Henri Bergson was a pioneering philosopher who challenged the prevailing scientific perspectives of his era, emphasizing instead the vitality of human creativity and freedom. By rejecting the mechanistic view of life, he inspired numerous artists, leading them to explore new intellectual horizons. Bergson's ideas about the human spirit and intuition left a lasting mark on both philosophical thought and the creative arts.
Early Life
Born into a cultured and diverse family, Henri Louis Bergson entered the world in the same year Charles Darwin's groundbreaking work, On the Origin of Species, was published (1859). This text would deeply influence Bergson's later philosophical pursuits, particularly as he sought to counter its unemotional perspective on human existence. His father, Michel, was a pianist who trained under the legendary Frédéric Chopin and moved from Warsaw, making a career in music across Europe and the UK, where he met and married Katherine Levinson, a woman of Irish-Jewish descent.
Although Henri was born in Paris, he spent his early childhood in London until the age of eight, when the family returned to Paris. Bergson settled there, eventually adopting French citizenship at twenty-one. His education began at the Lycée Fontane, later renamed Lycée Condorcet, where he remained until nineteen. It was here that he published his first noted work, a mathematical article that won recognition in the Annales de mathématiques.
Bergson excelled in both sciences and humanities, but ultimately chose to study philosophy at the École Normale Supérieure. After graduating in 1881, he began a teaching career at the Lycée D’Angers, followed by the Lycée Blaise Pascal in Auvergne. At thirty, Bergson published his first book, Essai sur les données immédiates de la conscience (later translated as Time and Free Will: An Essay on the Immediate Data of Consciousness), while also completing a doctoral dissertation on Aristotle at the University of Paris.
In 1891, Bergson returned to Paris and married Louise Neuberger, a cousin of Marcel Proust. He taught at the Lycée Henri IV until 1900, when he was appointed to a professorship in Greek philosophy at the Collège de France. Prior to taking this post, he authored Matière et mémoire (Matter and Memory), which scrutinized the connection between brain physiology and consciousness, expressing dissatisfaction with neurophysiological accounts of memory.
Life's Work
Bergson's early writings brought him recognition, but it was Le Rire (Laughter: An Essay on the Meaning of the Comic) in 1900 that secured his status among leading intellectuals. In this work, he theorized that laughter arises when a mechanical obstruction disrupts life's natural flow, drawing on the works of authors like Jonathan Swift and Molière to illustrate his ideas.
His subsequent work, Introduction à la métaphysique (An Introduction to Metaphysics), championed intuition over the analytical scientific methods that many humanities disciplines had adopted in pursuit of credibility. Bergson argued that the analytical method, reliant on abstract symbols, exists outside human experience and true knowledge, whereas intuition allows humans to engage directly with reality.
L’Évolution créatrice (Creative Evolution), published in 1907, is perhaps Bergson's most celebrated work. While acknowledging Darwin's theory of evolution, Bergson introduced the concept of the élan vital, positing that life has an inherent creative drive that Darwin's analytical approach neglects. He suggested that time is an internal experience within humans, a notion explored by literary figures like William Faulkner.
Bergson's divergence from the scientific orthodoxy of his day was not anti-science, but rather a call to balance scientific inquiry with human intuition, which he deemed essential to intellectual processes. His ideas resonated with a broad audience, drawing interest from...
(This entire section contains 1263 words.)
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both intellectuals and the general public due to his engaging prose and persuasive arguments.
The influence of Creative Evolution extended beyond academics, as Bergson postulated that evolution was not merely a mechanical process but one imbued with creativity and purpose. This perspective found favor with religious thinkers, particularly within Roman Catholic circles.
As World War I approached, Bergson reached the zenith of his influence, delivering lectures across Europe and the United States. In 1914, he was elected to the French Academy and served as the Gifford Lecturer at the University of Edinburgh. Although the war interrupted his lecture series, Bergson contributed thoughtful essays analyzing the conflict and served as a diplomat, supporting initiatives like the League of Nations post-war.
In the years following the war, Bergson's health declined, and severe arthritis and migraines plagued him. Unable to travel to Stockholm, he was awarded the 1927 Nobel Prize in Literature in 1928. The award recognized his profound impact on the creative imagination and his ability to transcend the restrictive intellectual molds of his education.
Bergson's final book, Les Deux Sources de la morale et de la religion (The Two Sources of Morality and Religion), completed amid deteriorating health, explored his largely Christian conception of God. Although he remained a Jew, he expressed in his 1937 will that he would have converted to Catholicism if not for his solidarity with Jewish communities under threat from Nazi policies.
Despite his stature, Bergson chose to register as a Jew under the Vichy regime's oppressive policies, resigning his honorary post at the Collège de France in solidarity. The resulting illness from standing in the cold led to his death in January 1941.
Summary
Henri Bergson endeavored to liberate intellectuals from the dominant scientific frameworks of his era, advocating a more balanced approach that respected human intuition and creativity. Although critics accused him of being anti-scientific, Bergson's true intent was to temper the overreach of scientific methods in non-scientific domains.
His work found a receptive audience among artists and writers who felt constrained by contemporary scientific biases. Despite criticism from figures like Bertrand Russell, who viewed his reliance on intuition skeptically, Bergson's concept of the élan vital inspired many creative individuals, offering them validation for their pursuits.
Through his exploration of consciousness, Bergson provided a framework for modern writers experimenting with stream-of-consciousness techniques. Authors such as Thomas Mann, Marcel Proust, and Virginia Woolf, along with artists like Claude Monet and Pablo Picasso, drew inspiration from Bergson's philosophy, leading to innovative artistic expressions. Bergson's enduring legacy lies in his profound influence on the arts and his celebration of the creative potential of the human spirit.
Bibliography
Alexander, Ian W. Bergson: Philosopher of Reflection. New York: Hillary House, 1957. This work offers a clear exploration of Bergson's ideas on knowledge and consciousness, highlighting their impact on creative artists.
Čapek, Milič. Bergson and Modern Physics: A Re-interpretation and Re-evaluation. Dordrecht, The Netherlands: D. Reidel, 1971. The book examines Bergson's biological theory of knowledge, intuition, and his views on matter in relation to modern physics.
Gunter, Pete A. Y., ed. Bergson and the Evolution of Physics. Knoxville: University of Tennessee Press, 1969. This collection argues against the notion that Bergson was anti-scientific, emphasizing the positive aspects of his ideas for scientific inquiry.
Hanna, Thomas, ed. The Bergsonian Heritage. New York: Columbia University Press, 1962. A compilation of essays from a symposium celebrating Bergson's centennial, it assesses his influence on theology and literature.
Mullen, Mary D. Essence and Operation in the Teaching of St. Thomas in Some Modern Philosophies. Washington, D.C.: The Catholic University Press, 1941. This work details the impact of Bergson on Jacques Maritain's Thomism, highlighting Bergson's spiritual journey.
Pilkington, Anthony Edward. Bergson and His Influence: A Reassessment. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press, 1976. This book devotes chapters to Bergson's impact on figures like Charles Péguy and Marcel Proust, providing insights into his theory of mobility.
Russell, Bertrand. The Philosophy of Bergson. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press, 1914. Russell critiques Bergson's reliance on intuition over scientific methodology, particularly in Creative Evolution.
Criticism by Henri Bergson
