American World View and Its Development

FAIN: FS-10814-78

Murray Murphey
University of Pennsylvania (Philadelphia, PA 19104-6205)

To study American intellectual history from the seventeenth through the nineteenth century in terms of the concepts of world view, emphasizing the relationships among science, religion, morality, philosophy, and common sense beliefs. All components of the world view will be treated as cognitive systems rooted in experience and serving as premises for action. The objective is a more adequate understanding of the nature and function of systems of belief in relation to action and experience.