Randall Auxier: A Scholar's Tapestry
Exploring the profound philosophical, academic, and cultural landscape shaped by Randall Auxier.
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Biography
A Multifaceted Scholar
Randall E. Auxier (born August 7, 1961) is a distinguished professor of philosophy and communication studies at Southern Illinois University Carbondale. His career spans academia, music, environmental activism, and political candidacy. He is recognized for his extensive writings on popular philosophy, his role as a radio host, and his co-founding directorship of the American Institute for Philosophical and Cultural Thought.
Early Influences
Born in Leitchfield, Kentucky, Auxier's formative years in Memphis, Tennessee, were profoundly shaped by the civil rights movement and the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. His education in integrated public schools, necessitated by court-ordered busing, provided a unique perspective on social dynamics and justice.
Academic Foundations
Auxier pursued higher education at the University of Memphis before dedicating himself to philosophy. He earned his Ph.D. from Emory University, focusing on theories of signs and symbols as applied to metaphysical language, drawing upon the works of Cassirer, Langer, Peirce, and Eco.
Profile Overview
Born | Randall E. Auxier 1961 (age 63–64) Leitchfield, Kentucky, US |
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Spouse | Gaye Chandler Auxier |
Education | University of Memphis |
Institutions | Emory University |
Main Interests |
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Notable Ideas |
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Education and Career Trajectory
Foundational Studies
Auxier attended public schools in Memphis, Tennessee, graduating from Hillcrest High School in 1979. He initially pursued Criminal Justice at Memphis State University (now University of Memphis) from 1979 to 1981, taking a hiatus to pursue music professionally before returning to complete undergraduate degrees in philosophy and criminal justice (magna cum laude) in 1986. He obtained his MA in philosophy in 1988 and completed his Ph.D. in philosophy at Emory University in 1992.
Academic Appointments
His academic career began at Oklahoma City University in 1992, where he chaired the philosophy department and directed the Institute of Liberal Arts. In 2000, he moved to Southern Illinois University Carbondale (SIUC). While maintaining his philosophy affiliation, his primary assignment shifted to the department of communication studies in 2017. He has also held visiting professorships at the University of Warsaw.
Editorial Leadership
The Pluralist
Auxier's engagement with philosophical personalism led him to edit The Personalist Forum, which he helped sustain until its transition to The Pluralist under the University of Illinois Press. This journal, now the official publication of the Society for the Advancement of American Philosophy, became a significant platform for contemporary philosophical discourse under his editorship from 2006 to 2012.
Library of Living Philosophers
Since 2001, Auxier has served as the editor of the prestigious Library of Living Philosophers series. This series provides a unique forum for contemporary philosophers to engage with critical analyses of their work, followed by their own responses, offering definitive insights into their thought. He has overseen volumes on prominent figures such as Seyyed Hossein Nasr, Jaakko Hintikka, Richard Rorty, and Arthur C. Danto.
American Institute for Philosophical and Cultural Thought
Founding Vision
In response to the cessation of activities at the Center for Dewey Studies, Auxier, alongside John R. Shook and Larry A. Hickman, co-founded the American Institute for Philosophical and Cultural Thought (AIPCT) in 2016. This private foundation is dedicated to advancing American thought and related scholarly pursuits.
Resources and Programs
AIPCT houses a substantial collection of works on American thought and the papers of significant 20th-century philosophers and theologians. The institute fosters intellectual exchange through regular programs, seminars, public lectures, and provides fellowships for researchers, collaborating closely with SIUC's Special Collections Research Center.
Scholarly Output
Key Books
Auxier's extensive bibliography includes authored and co-authored books that delve into diverse philosophical areas. Notable works include Metaphysical Graffiti: Deep Cuts in the Philosophy of Rock (2017), Time, Will and Purpose: Living Ideas from the Philosophy of Josiah Royce (2013), and The Quantum of Explanation: Whitehead's Radical Empiricism (2017).
Journal Contributions
Auxier has also made significant contributions to academic journals, serving as deputy chief editor for Eidos: A Journal for Philosophy of Culture and previously editing The Pluralist and The Personalist Forum. His editorial work extends to the SUNY Series in American Philosophical and Cultural Thought and the esteemed Library of Living Philosophers.
Philosophical Contributions
Metaphysics and Logic
Auxier champions a process-relational metaphysics termed "analogical realism." His theory posits a distinction between operational (semiotic) and functional (symbolic) language in metaphysics. He argues that possibility is fundamental and uncreated, with potency being possibility constrained by actuality. His work on logic explores the relationship between reflective and active thinking, viewing intensive logic as foundational to extensional logic.
Philosophy of Culture
Drawing from Vico, Kant, and Cassirer, Auxier views culture as an emergent activity of animals in concert with the cosmos. He challenges the notion of symbols as exclusively human, asserting that animal consciousness contributes significantly. He critiques Western triumphalism and individualism, emphasizing the primacy of the embodied community and valuing "low culture" alongside high culture.
Ethics and Political Philosophy
As a personalist, Auxier grounds moral reasoning in the personal form of experience. He posits that communities are more concrete persons than biological individuals and that the ultimate aim of social life is the "beloved community." He advocates for a nonviolent approach to problem-solving, viewing violence as an aberration, and integrates environmental conservation with democratic principles.
Aesthetics and Science
Auxier identifies aesthetic feeling as the basis for meaning and symbol creation, drawing on Bergson and Langer. He views music as particularly significant in shaping feeling and culture. In philosophy of science, he critiques reductionist approaches, defends evolutionary theory while questioning strict Darwinism, and proposes the "quantum of explanation" as a fundamental unit for scientific understanding, linking scientific genius to aesthetic intuition.
Theology and Religion
Auxier asserts that theology must adhere to philosophical norms and methods. He defends a pluralistic, culturally embedded view of religious life, emphasizing the role of ritual and myth. His perspective aligns with liberal, Arminian, and Wesleyan Protestant traditions, often critically engaging with Calvinist doctrines.
Activism and Public Engagement
Political Involvement
Auxier has been a vocal advocate for environmental causes and social justice, protesting wars and opposing development projects that threaten natural resources. He joined the Green Party in 2000 and has run for public office, including for the U.S. House of Representatives, championing principles of community, conservation, and nonviolence.
Labor Advocacy
As a union advocate, Auxier played a significant role in the Illinois Education Association (IEA). He served on bargaining teams and was a leader in the 2011 SIUC faculty strike, which successfully resulted in a new contract and a subsequent ruling against the university for bad-faith bargaining.
Media Presence
Since 2001, Auxier has hosted a radio show on WDBX Carbondale, utilizing this platform to discuss philosophy, culture, and current events. He also contributes to online publications like Radically Empirical, further extending his reach and engagement with broader audiences.
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References
References
- Randall Auxier, Signs and Symbols: An Analogical Theory of Metaphysical Language, PhD diss., Emory University, 1992.
- For more, see: Gottlob Frege, The Foundations of Arithmetic a Logico-mathematical Enquiry into the Concept of Number, 2nd Revised ed. (Evanston, IL: Northwestern University Press, 1980).
- For more, see: Alfred North Whitehead and Bertrand Russell, Principia Mathematica, vol. 1-3 (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1950).
- For more, see: John D. Schaeffer, Sensus Communis: Vico, Rhetoric, and the Limits of Relativism (Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 1990).
- For more, see: Randall Auxier and Gary Herstein, The Quantum of Explanation: Whitehead's Radical Empiricism (New York: Routledge, 2017), 143-192.
- For more, see: Randall Auxier and Gary Herstein, The Quantum of Explanation: Whitehead's Radical Empiricism, 39-50.
- For more, see: Delton Thomas Howard, Analytical Syllogistics: A Pragmatic Interpretation of the Aristotelian Logic (New York: AMS Press, 1970).
- For more, see: Susanne Langer, An Introduction to Symbolic Logic, Third Revised ed. (New York: Dover, 1967).
- For more, see: Randall Auxier, âErnst Cassirer and Susanne Langer,â in A Handbook of Whiteheadian Process Thought, vol. 2, eds. Michel Weber and Will Desmond (Frankfurt: Ontos Verlag, 2008), 552-570.
- For more, see: Randall Auxier, âImagination and Historical Knowledge in Vico: A Critique of Leon Pompa's Recent Work,â Humanitas, 10:1 (1997), 26-49.
- For more, see: Randall Auxier, âFoucault, Dewey and the History of the Present,â in Journal of Speculative Philosophy, vol. 16:2 (2002), 75-102.
- For more, see: Randall Auxier, Time, Will and Purpose: Living Ideas from the Philosophy of Josiah Royce (Chicago: Open Court, 2013), 125-162:
- For more, see: Randall Auxier, Metaphysical Graffiti: Deep Cuts in the Philosophy of Rock (Chicago: Open Court, 2017) and the selective bibliography below.
- For more, see: Randall Auxier, Time Will and Purpose: Living Ideas from the Philosophy of Josiah Royce, 285-308.
- For more, see: Randall Auxier, âImage and Act: Bergson's Ontology and Aesthetics,â in Sztuka i Filozofia / Art and Philosophy, 45 (2014), 64-81.
- For more, see: Ernst Cassirer, The Philosophy of Symbolic Forms: The Metaphysics of Symbolic Forms, ed. John. Michael Krois and Donald Phillipe Verene, Trans. John Michael Krois, Vol. 4 (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1996).
- For more, see: Alfred North Whitehead, Process and Reality: An Essay in Cosmology, ed. David Ray Griffin and Donald W. Sherburne, Corrected ed. (New York: Free Press, 1978), 168-183.
- For more, see: Immanuel Kant, Critique of Judgment, trans. Werner S. Pluhar (Indianapolis, IN: Hackett, 1987).
- For more, see: Randall Auxier, âThe Death of Darwinism and the Limits of Evolution,â in Philo, 9:2 (fall-winter 2006), 193-220.
- For more, see; Randall Auxier and Gary Herstein, The Quantum of Explanation: Whitehead's Radical Empiricism, 66-81.
- Or in Mathematics. For more, see: Philip J. Davis and Reuben Hersh, The Mathematical Experience (New York: Mariner Books, 1999).
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