Alfred North Whitehead
Alfred North Whitehead
Alfred North Whitehead (February 15, 1861 - December 30, 1947) was a British philosopher and mathematician who worked in logic, mathematics, philosophy of science and metaphysics. His best known work in mathematics is the Principia Mathematica which he wrote with Bertrand Russell.
In philosophy, Whitehead is perhaps most well known for developing process philosophy, which was then developed into process theology by many liberal theologian/philosophers, such as Charles Hartshorne. Process theology has since been accepted as a valid way of understanding God by some liberal Christian and Jewish scholars and laypeople.
His political views were, roughly, libertarianism without the label. He wrote: "Now the intercourse between individuals and between social groups takes one of two forms, force or persuasion. Commerce is the great example of intercourse by way of persuasion. War, slavery, and governmental compulsion exemplify the reign of force."
| This article is part of the Influential Western Philosophers series |
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Further reading