Émile Bréhier
French historian of philosophy
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Émile Bréhier (French: [bʁeje]; 12 April 1876 – 3 February 1952) was a French philosopher and historian of philosophy. He wrote a Histoire de la Philosophie, translated into English in seven volumes. This work inspired Frederick Copleston's own History of Philosophy (1946–1975), initially comprising nine volumes.
Émile Bréhier | |
|---|---|
| Born | 12 April 1876 Bar-le-Duc, France |
| Died | 3 February 1952 (aged 75) Paris, France |
| Relatives | Louis Bréhier (brother) |
| Academic background | |
| Alma mater | University of Paris |
| Thesis | Les idées philosophiques et religieuses de Philon d'Alexandrie (1907) |
Academic advisors | Henri Bergson Victor Brochard Victor Delbos |
| Academic work | |
| Era | 20th-century philosophy |
| Region | Western philosophy |
School or tradition | Continental philosophy |
| Institutions | University of Rennes University of Bordeaux University of Paris |
Doctoral students | Jean Hyppolite Maurice Merleau-Ponty |
Notable students | Ferdinand Alquié Paul Dibon Martial Gueroult Vladimir Jankélévitch |
Main interests | History of philosophy |
Life
In 1908, Bréhier received his doctorate from the Sorbonne with a dissertation on thoughts of Philo of Alexandria.[1] From 1910 to 1912, he was Master of Philosophical Conferences at the University of Rennes, and professor of philosophy at the University of Bordeaux from 1912 to 1914.[2] He was Henri Bergson's successor at the University of Paris in 1945.
In 1914, Bréhier became a sub-lieutenant in the 344th Infantry Regiment; later, he was made a knight of the Légion d'honneur.[2] In 1914, he lost his left arm in combat.
The art historian Louis Bréhier was his brother.
Philosophical work
He was an early follower of Bergson; in the 1930s there was an influential view that Bergsonism and Neoplatonism were linked.[3]
He has been called "the sole figure in the French history who adopts an Hegelian interpretation of Neoplatonism",[4] but also a neo-Kantian opponent of Hegel.[5]
Works
- Les idées philosophiques et religieuses de Philon d'Alexandrie, (1908)
- La Théorie des incorporels dans l'ancien stoïcisme, Paris, Librairie Alphonse Picard & fils (1907).
- Schelling (1912)
- Histoire de la philosophie allemande (1921)
- La Philosophie de Plotin
- Plotin: Ennéades (with French translation), Collection Budé (1924–1938)
- Histoire de la philosophie – I: Antiquité et moyen âge (three volumes), II: La philosophie moderne (four volumes)
- La philosophie du moyen âge (1949)
- Le monde byzantin – la civilisation byzantine (1950)
- Chrysippe et l'ancien stoïcisme (Paris, 1951)
- Histoire de la philosophie allemande, 3rd edition updated by Paul Ricœur (1954).
- Études de philosophie antique (1955)
He contributed the articles "Philo Judaeus", and "Stoics and Stoic Philosophy" to the Catholic Encyclopedia.[2]
