W. F. R. Hardie

William Francis Ross "Frank" Hardie (25 April 1902 – 30 September 1990) was a Scottish classicist, philosopher and academic. He was President of Corpus Christi College, Oxford, from 1950 to 1969.^[1][2]

W. F. R. Hardie
Born	William Francis Ross Hardie 25 April 1902 Edinburgh, Scotland
Died	30 September 1990(1990-09-30) (aged 88) Oxford, Oxfordshire, England
Spouse	Isobel ​ (m. 1938)​
Children	2
Relatives	Prof William Hardie (father) Colin Hardie (brother)
Academic background
Alma mater	Balliol College, Oxford
Academic work
Discipline	Classics
Sub-discipline	Ancient philosophy Plato Aristotle Ethics
Institutions	Magdalen College, Oxford Corpus Christi College, Oxford
Notable students	Isaiah Berlin, Paul Grice

Early life and education

Hardie was born on 25 April 1902 in Edinburgh, Scotland to William Hardie, classical scholar. His brother, Colin, also went on to become a successful classicist. He was educated at Edinburgh Academy, then an all-boys private school. He studied literae humaniores ("Classics") at Balliol College, Oxford, graduating with a double first Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree in 1924: he was awarded a number of undergraduate prizes in classics and philosophy.^[1][2]

Academic career

Hardie spent 1925 as a fellow by examination at Magdalen College, Oxford.^[3] In 1926, he was appointed to a tutorial fellowship at Corpus Christi College, Oxford.^[2][1] He was the college tutor in philosophy and notable tutees included Isaiah Berlin,^[4] Paul Grice,^[5] and J. O. Urmson, who reported that Hardie "when a tutor, turned out many more first-rate philosophers than most."^[6]

Hardie became President of Corpus Christi College in 1950, (being replaced as philosophy tutor by David Pears)^[7] and during his tenure saw the college fellowship double and the student numbers increase.^[1] He retired in 1969 and was appointed an honorary fellow by his college.^[3]

Hardie has also been credited with naming the academic discipline of psephology,^[1] the study of voting behaviours and the statistical analysis of elections, but this has been disputed.^[8]

Personal life

Im 1938, Hardie married Isobel St Maur Macaulay. Together they had two sons.^[3]

Hardie died on 30 September 1990 in Oxford, England.^[1]

Works

• A Study in Plato. Oxford: Oxford University Press. 1936.
• Naturalistic Ethics. London: British Academy. 1947.
• Aristotle's Ethical Theory. Oxford: Oxford University Press. 1968.

References

1. Bailey, Cyril; Pottle, Mark (January 2011). "Hardie, William Ross (1862–1916)". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/33698. Retrieved 4 November 2014. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
2. "Hardie, William Francis Ross (1902–90)". The Continuum Encyclopedia of British Philosophy. Continuum. 2006. ISBN 978-0-19-975469-4.
3. "Hardie, William Francis Ross". Who Was Who. Oxford University Press. 1 December 2007. doi:10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.U165002. ISBN 978-0-19-954089-1. Retrieved 5 November 2018.
4. Berlin, Isaiah (31 August 2013). Henry, Hardy (ed.). Building: Letters 1960-1975. Random House. p. 533. ISBN 978-1-4481-9134-5. 1. William Francis Ross (Frank') Hardie (1901-90). Fellow and Tutor in Philosophy. CCC, 1926-50. President 1950-69; IB's philosophy tutor at CCC, and a profound influence on his literary style, as well as his intellectual approach: 'extremely clever, modest, sharp — one couldn't get away with a single piece of rhetoric. however harmless, without explaining exactly what one meant, very clearly. Extremely deflationary; all the same, just and kind' (MI Tape 5).
5. Chapman, Siobhan (2005). Paul Grice, philosopher and linguist. Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire: Palgrave Macmillan. pp. 13–14. ISBN 0-230-00585-3. OCLC 191953003. Grice always emphasised what he saw as his own good fortune in being allocated as tutee to W. F. R. (Frank) Hardie.
6. Berlin, Isaiah (2005). Henry, Hardy (ed.). Flourishing : letters 1928-1946. Internet Archive. London : Pimlico. p. 710. ISBN 978-0-7126-3565-3. Mr Hardie, when a tutor, turned out many more first-rate philosophers than most, so that his method was certainly-successful; but he was certainly inclined to judicious questioning rather than to imparting information or propagating his own views. One had very little idea what his views were. An essay beginning with a confident assertion of some generality would be greeted with a low, but agonised, moan. One would be required to say what one meant, what were one's grounds, how one would deal with this and that objection. . . . J. O. Urmson, 'W. F. R. Hardie: President 1950-1969', Pelican 1 No 1 (Michaelmas 1969), 4.
7. Rowe, M. W. (11 May 2023), "White's Professor", J. L. Austin, Oxford University PressOxford, pp. 474–494, doi:10.1093/oso/9780198707585.003.0028, ISBN 978-0-19-870758-5, retrieved 31 December 2023
8. Crick, Michael (25 October 2018). Sultan of Swing: The Life of David Butler. Biteback Publishing. pp. 89–91. ISBN 978-1-78590-439-4.

External links

• A Lucianic Dialogue, Between Socrates in Hades and Certain Men of the Present Day, Who Are Conducted Thither by Pollux on One of His Annual Excursions (1922) by William Francis Ross Hardie [at Internet Archive]