G. E. Moore 1873 – 1958
George Edward Moore was a British philosopher and, with Bertrand Russell and Ludwig Wittgenstein, a founding figure of the analytic tradition at Cambridge. In Principia Ethica he argued that good is a simple, indefinable property and exposed what he called the naturalistic fallacy, the attempt to define good in terms of any natural feature. His Defence of Common Sense and Proof of an External World became touchstones of twentieth-century epistemology, articulating a robust realism against idealism and skepticism. Moore's plain style and patient analysis shaped the analytic temperament for generations.
Key facts
- Nationality
- British
- Era
- Contemporary
- Movements
- Analytic
Selected quotes
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Attributed to G. E. Moore:
“Good is good, and that is the end of the matter.”
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Attributed to G. E. Moore:
“By far the most valuable things which we know or can imagine are certain states of consciousness, which may be roughly described as the pleasures of human intercourse and the enjoyment of beautiful objects.”
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Attributed to G. E. Moore:
“Here is one hand, and here is another.”
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Attributed to G. E. Moore:
“It went out, but I do not believe it went out.”
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Attributed to G. E. Moore:
“A philosophical question, when fully understood, will be found to be already half answered.”