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William James Biography

William James (January 11, 1842 – August 26, 1910) was an American philosopher and psychologist, and the first educator to offer a psychology course in the United States. James was one of the leading thinkers of the late nineteenth century and is believed by many to be one of the most influential philosophers the United States has ever produced, while others have labeled him the "Father of American psychology".

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William James Quotes

No more fiendish punishment could be devised, were such a thing physically possible, than that one should be turned loose in society and remain absolutely unnoticed.

Political, Politics, Punishment, Remain, Thing, Unnoticed

The transition from tenseness, self-responsibility, and worry, to equanimity, receptivity, and peace, is the most wonderful of all those shiftings of inner equilibrium, those changes of personal centre of energy, which I have analyzed so often; and the chief wonder of it is that it so often comes about, not by doing, but by simply relaxing and throwing the burden down.

Chief, Personal, Relaxing, Responsibility, Self, Worry

When once a decision is reached and execution is the order of the day, dismiss absolutely all responsibility and care about the outcome.

Care, Decision, Order, Outcome, Responsibility

There is an organic affinity between joyousness and tenderness, and their companionship in the saintly life need in no way occasion surprise.

Companionship, Needs, Occasion, Way

A good hypothesis in science must have other properties than those of the phenomenon it is immediately invoked to explain, otherwise it is not prolific enough.

Enough, Hypothesis, Invoked, Prolific, Statistics

Our belief at the beginning of a doubtful undertaking is the one thing that assures the successful outcome of any venture.

Assures, Believe, Confidence, Doubtful, Outcome, Success

The most ancient parts of truth. . . also once were plastic. They also were called true for human reasons. They also mediated between still earlier truths and what in those days were novel observations. Purely objective truth, truth in whose establishment the function of giving human satisfaction in marrying previous parts of experience with newer parts played no role whatsoever, is nowhere to be found. The reasons why we call things true is the reason why they are true, for to be true means only to perform this marriage-function.

Giving, Mean, Reason, Reasons, Things, Truth

Give your dreams all you've got, and you'll be amazed at the energy that comes out of you.

Amazed, Basketball, Dream, Energy, Give, Perseverance

An educated memory depends on an organized system of associations; and its goodness depends on two of their peculiarities: first, on the persistency of the associations; and, second, on their number.

Associations, Depends, Educational, Memories, Organized, Philosophy

The art of being wise is the art of knowing what to overlook.

Art, Knowing, Overlook, Positive, Wisdom, Wise

To consider hypotheses is surely always better than to dogmatize ins blaue hinein

Blaue, Dogmatize, Hinein, Hypotheses, Hypothesis, Truth

I take it that no man is educated who has never dallied with the thought of suicide.

Dallied, Educated, Men, Suicidal, Suicide, Take

It does not follow, because our ancestors made so many errors of fact and mixed them with their religion, that we should therefore leave off being religious at all. By being religious we establish ourselves in possession of ultimate reality at the only points at which reality is given us to guard. Our responsible concern is with our private destiny, after all.

Concern, Destiny, Guard, Reality, Religious, Ultimate

Seek out that particular mental attribute which makes you feel most deeply and vitally alive, along with which comes the inner voice which says, 'This is the real me,' and when you have found that attitude, follow it.

Attitude, Business, Inspirational, Particular, Voice

Truths emerge from facts, but they dip forward into facts again and add to them; which facts again create or reveal new truth (the word is indifferent) and so on indefinitely. The 'facts' themselves meanwhile are not true. They simply are. Truth is the function of the beliefs that start and terminate among them.

Add, Facts, Simply, True, Truth

Beyond the very extreme of fatigue and distress, we may find amounts of ease and power we never dreamed ourselves to own; sources of strength never taxed at all because we never push through the obstruction

Born To Run, Dreamed, Ease, May, Power, Taxed

There are no differences but differences of degree between different degrees of difference and no difference.

Degrees, Difference, Differences, Different

The question of free will is insoluble on strictly psychological grounds.

Free, Free Will, Grounds, Insoluble, Psychological, Question

Our esteem for facts has not neutralized in us all religiousness. It is itself almost religious. Our scientific temper is devout.

Devout, Facts, Religious, Religiousness, Temper

My thinking is first and last and always for the sake of my doing, and I can only do one thing at a time.

Lasts, Sake, Thing, Thinking

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