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Article ID: CBB000247262

Thompson, Biographer (2021)

Centaurus: International Magazine of the History of Mathematics, Science, and Technology
Volume: 63
Issue: 3
Pages: 475-488
Publication date: 2021
Language: English

URI: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/1600-0498.12404

DOI: 10.1111/1600-0498.12404

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Moral and ethical aspects Science and religion Biographies Quakers and Quakerism 20th century, early 19th century Thompson, Silvanus Phillips

This paper addresses the role of religion in the construction of scientific biographies. As a devout Quaker, Silvanus Phillips Thompson believed that biographical writing was a serious endeavour and considered that it had a moral purpose. His short biographies of Philipp Reis and William Sturgeon sought to do justice to the achievements of these two little-known inventors. Likewise, in his longer biographies of Michael Faraday and Lord Kelvin (William Thomson), he emphasised his subjects' strong moral qualities and dedication to seeking after truth. They were portrayed as committed Christians—honest, empathetic, and altruistic. In opposing the positivist view of science, Thompson stressed the role of intuition—the “Inner Light”—in the scientific discoveries made by Faraday and Kelvin.

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