Elizabeth Anscombe (1919–2001) was one of the most important philosophers of the second half of the twentieth century, making major contributions in philosophy of mind, ethics, and metaphysics. She is particularly renowned for her work on intention and action. A pupil and friend of Ludwig Wittgenstein, Anscombe showed a deep understanding of his aims and methods, while being a bold and original thinker in her own right.
Anscombe published two monographs and numerous articles in her lifetime, and left a considerable Nachlass. The monograph Intention (1957) has been hugely influential and has generated much discussion, as have such articles as ‘Modern Moral Philosophy’ and ‘The First Person’. (Indeed, ‘Modern Moral Philosophy’ has been credited with inspiring that renewal of interest in virtues and character which came to be embodied in a whole school of thought, often called ‘Virtue Theory’.) Profound, often difficult, sometimes provocative, her work is probably unique in modern philosophy for its combination of breadth and depth.
Now, to allow researchers and advanced students to make better sense of Anscombe, her major works, and the developments it has encouraged, Routledge announces this new four-volume collection in its acclaimed Critical Assessments of Leading Philosophers series. Henceforward, Anscombe scholars and students will be able easily and rapidly to locate the best and most influential critical scholarship, work that is otherwise often inaccessible or scattered throughout a variety of specialist journals and books. With material gathered into one easy-to-use set, researchers and students can now spend more of their time with the key journal articles, book chapters, and other pieces, rather than on time-consuming (and sometimes fruitless) archival searches.
Fully indexed and with a comprehensive introduction newly written by the expert editor, which places the collected material in its historical and intellectual context, Elizabeth Anscombe is an essential reference work and is destined to be valued as a vital research resource.
Roger Teichmann is a lecturer in philosophy at Oxford University, teaching at St. Hilda's College. He has written on the philosophy of time, philosophy of logic and language, ethics, philosophy of mind, and of course Anscombe. He was a friend and student of Anscombe's in Cambridge, and among other
things has edited a Festschrift for her (Logic, Cause and Action, CUP 2000). He also composes.
