Mary Midgley

[[File:Mary Midgley.JPG|thumb|left|165px|Midgley in 2002]]
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'''Mary Midgley''' {{lived|1919|2018}} was a [[United Kingdom|British]] philosopher and a senior lecturer at Newcastle University, who specialized in [[ethics]] and wrote extensively on [[moral]] philosophy, [[epistemology]], [[science]], and [[animal rights]]. Her father was chaplain of King's College, Cambridge.

Midgley was an [[atheist]] and argued for a [[naturalism|naturalistic]] understanding of the universe, but opposed [[reductionism]] and [[scientism]]. Her first book, ''Beast and Man'' (1978), attacked both [[human exceptionalism]] that places humanity outside the natural realm and overly reductionist sociobiology that denies human agency and [[morality]].<ref>David L. Hull. [http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/2184450?uid=3739576&uid=2&uid=4&uid=3739256&sid=21102840929713 Beast and Man: The Roots of Human Nature by Mary Midgley.] ''The Philosophical Review'', Vol. 90, No. 2 (Apr., 1981), pp. 307-310</ref>

Midgley notably wrote a [[Hyperbole|hyperbolic]] response to [[Richard Dawkins]]' ''[[The Selfish Gene]]'' and J.L. Mackie's review of said book, claiming that their rhetorical [[anthropomorphism]] and [[equivocation]] led to an implicit endorsement of [[ethical egoism|psychological egoism]].<ref>Mary Midgley. [http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/3751039?uid=3739576&uid=2&uid=4&uid=3739256&sid=21102840929713 "Gene Juggling",] ''Philosophy'', vol 54, no. 210, 1979, pp. 439–458</ref> Dawkins replied, with some justification, that this was a [[straw man]] and he had been misread.<ref>Richard Dawkins. [http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/3750888?uid=3739576&uid=2&uid=4&uid=3739256&sid=21102840929713 In Defence of Selfish Genes.] ''Philosophy'' Vol. 56, No. 218 (Oct., 1981), pp. 556-573</ref> Midgley later apologized for her initial bombast, but reiterated her criticisms of [[neo-Darwinism]].<ref>Mary Midgley. [http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/3750771?uid=3739576&uid=2&uid=4&uid=3739256&sid=21102840929713 "Selfish Genes and Social Darwinism",] Philosophy, vol 58, 1983, pp. 365–377</ref>

She was unfortunately prone to endorsing dubious ideas and figures that flirt with [[pseudoscience]] or openly promote it. She was a booster of James Lovelock's [[Gaia hypothesis]]<ref>See ''Myths We Live By'' (2002)</ref> and later endorsed the antics of [[Rupert Sheldrake]].<ref>Mary Midgley. [http://www.theguardian.com/books/2012/jan/27/science-delusion-rupert-sheldrake-review ''The Science Delusion'' by Rupert Sheldrake - review.] ''[[The Guardian]]'', 27 Jan. 2012</ref>

==External links==
*[https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/1118549/metaphysical-animals/9781784743284.html Clare Mac Cumhaill, Rachael Wiseman, Metaphysical Animals, "How Four Women Brought Philosophy Back to Life," ''Chatto and Windus,'' ISBN 9781784743284, (2022).]
*[https://www.theguardian.com/books/2022/feb/10/metaphysical-animals-review-four-women-who-changed-philosophy Anil Gomes, "Metaphysical Animals review – four women who changed philosophy," ''The Guardian'', Feb. 10, 2022, accessed Mar. 20, 2022.]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20190914223939/https://www.theguardian.com/education/2018/oct/12/mary-midgley-obituary Jane Heal, "Mary Midgley obituary," ''The Guardian'', Oct. 12, 2018, accessed Sep. 20, 2019.]

==References==
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[[Category:Atheists]]
[[Category:British people]]
[[Category:Philosophers]]
[[Category:Pseudoscience promoters]]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Midgley, Mary}}

Categories: Atheists, British people, Philosophers, Pseudoscience promoters