1. Aiken, Henry David / John Rawls / Donald Davidson / Rudolf Carnap / Roderick M. Chisholm / Nelson Goodman / Raphael Demos and others.

Collection of manuscript material, offprints, association-copies and books from the library and personal collection of Professor Henry David Aiken, American Philosopher, specialist on Analytic Philosophy, Aesthetics, Ethics and Education at the Universities of Columbia, Harvard, Michigan and Brandeis. The collection reflects Aiken’s deep connections to the important postwar-period of great thinkers at American Universities like Harvard and Brandeis. Aiken was friends with John Rawls, Raphael Demos, Daniel Bell, Arnold Kaufman, Stephen Toulmin, Israel Scheffler. Aiken’s “Beloved teacher” and mentor was Ralph Barton Perry (see his dedication in “Predicament of the University”). More importantly, Aiken was accepted as scholar and friend around important thinkers like Willard Van Orman Quine, Alfred North Whitehead, Robert Nozick and John Rawls. The collection includes first edition offprints from nearly all of these mentioned, including the rare first appearance of John Rawls’ “Justice as Fairness” in its original wrappers-issue from 1957 [See on our website images under “Libraries & Collections”]. The collection also includes materials previously inscribed and gifted to fellow philosophers in Aiken’s circle of friends, now reunited with this Archive. [Please enquire for access to excellent photographs and descriptions to each title, included in this collection]. The collection includes for example the Proof of Aiken’s publication “The Predicament of the University” [Working-Title: “The Future of the University”] – This title is of great interest alone, with Aiken’s annotations. Also included is the first edition of Aiken’s personal copy of his Thesis for the Degree of Bachelor of Arts: “Hegel’s Philosophy of Fine Art – A Study with special reference to the Theory of Tragedy”. Among the collection are roughly 200 offprints, often with dedications and inscriptions to colleagues. [Each title is listed in detail, with images, on our website under “Libraries & Collections” (click on “Henry D. Aiken Collection”).

Harvard / Brandeis / Cambridge (Mass.) etc., c. 1935 – 1975. Octavo & Quarto. More than 2000 pages. Original Softcover / Stapled. Very good condition with only minor signs of wear.

2. Edwards, Jonathan.

A careful and strict Enquiry into the Modern Prevailing Notions of that Freedom of Will, which is supposed to be essential to Moral Agency, Virtue and Vice, Reward and Punishment, Praise and Blame.

First British Edition. Boston / London, Re-Printed for Thomas Field, 1762. Octavo. IX, [5], 414, [8] pages plus two pages of advertising for Jonathan Edwards’ “Treatise concerning Religious Effections”. Hardcover / Original 18th century calf, rebacked with new spine and spinelabel. Interior all original and besides some minor signs of foxing in very good condition. Name of preowner in ink on titlepage. Binding overall excellent with only minor signs of external wear. A very rare and important book.

3. James, William / [Gibbens, Alice Howe].

The Energies of Men. [Personal copy of William James’ wife Alice Howe Gibbens – signed: “A.H.James”]. Stunning provenance of the First Edition-offprint from ‘The Philosophical Review’, Vol. XVI, No. 1, January, 1907, of William James’ Presidential Address to the American Philosophical Association on December 28th, 1906. A study of psychic energy ranging from Pierre Janet to Yoga to the “mind-cure” movement. James already is fascinated in this address about G.Papini’s “Doctrine of Action”, “the study of all human powers and means”.

1907. Octavo. 19 pages. Original Wrappers / Softcover. The wrappers detached and brittle. The pages stapled and in very good condition. James retired in January 1907 from Harvard. Possibly one of the rarest offprints with a William James-connection and with high probability, a gift from James to his wife. Books with the provenance of his wife never seem to surface on the market.

4. Sartre, Jean-Paul / de Beauvoir, Simone / Merleau-Ponty, Maurice / Beckett, Samuel / Benjamin, Walter etc.

Les Temps Modernes [Modern Times]. Revue Mensuelle. 88 (eightyeight) Issues / Volumes of this important Periodical / [Lot de 88 numéros: 2e année – No. 13 (Octobre 1946) – 11e année – No. 125 (Juin 1956)]. The collection includes reviews / critique of famous essays like Simone de Beauvoir’s “La Lesbienne” and Jean-Paul Sartre’s “La mort dans l’ame” and “Le Diable et le Bon Dieu” / Werner Krauss – “Un Allemand a Paris / Enno Kind – La Resistance allemande etc. The collection includes: Year 1947: 2e année, No.13 / 2e année, No.14 / 2e année, No.22 / 2e année, No.23/24 / 2e année, No.25 / 3e année, No.26 / 3e année, No. 27 / Year 1948: 3e année, No.28 / 3e année, No.29 / 3e année, No. 30 / 3e année, No.31 / 3e année, No.32 / 3e année, No.33 / 3e année, No.34 / 3e année, No.35 / 3e année, No.36 / 4e année, No.37 / 4e année, No.38 / Year 1949: 4e année, No.39 / 4e année, No.40 / 4e année, No.41 / 4e année, No.42 / 4e année, No.43 / 4e année, No.44 / 5e année, No.45 / 5e année, No.46-47 / 5e année, No.48 / 5e année, No.49 / 5e année, No.50 / Year 1950: 5e année, No.51 / 5e année, No.43 / 5e année, No.54 / 5e année, No.55 / 5e année, No.56 / 6e année, No.57 / 6e année, No.58 / 6e année, No.59 / 6e année, No.60 / Year 1951: 6e année, No.63 / 6e année, No.64 / 6e année, No.65 / 6e année, No.66 / 6e année, No.67 / 6e année, No.68 / 7e année, No.69 / 7e année, No.70 / 7e année, No.71 / 7e année, No.72 / 7e année, No.73 / 7e année, No.74 / Year 1952: 7e année, No.75 / 7e année, No.76 / 7e année, No.77 / 7e année, No.79 / 7e année, No.80 / 8e année, No.81 / 8e année, No.82 / 8e année, No.83 / 8e année, No.84-85 / 8e année, No.86 / Year 1953: 8e année, No.87 / 8e année, No.88 / 8e année, No.89 / 8e année, No.90 / 8e année, No.91 / 9e année, No.92 / 9e année, No.93-94 / 9e année, No.95 / Year 1954: 9e année, No.99 / 9e année, No.100 / 9e année, No.101 / 9e année, No.102 / 9e année, No.103 / 10e année, No.104 / 10e année, No.105 / 10e année, No.106 / 10e année, No.107 / 10e année, No.108 / Year 1955: 10e année, No.109 / 10e année, No.110 / 10e année, No.111 / 10e année, No.112-113 (Numero Special: “La Gauche” – avec Simone de Beauvoir, Victor Leduc, Maurice Duverger, Claude Lanzmann, Jean T. Desant etc. etc.) / 10e année, No.114-115 / Year 1956: 11e année, No.121 / 11e année, No.122 / 11e année, No.123 / 11e année, No.124 / 11e année, No.125 //

Paris, Les Temp Modernes [Gallimard (1945-1948) / Julliard (1949-1965), 1946 -1956. Octavo. Original Softcover / Broche Originale. Some of the issues with condition-problems but in general in good to very good condition with some of the issues having frayed and detached wrappers. Only one frontwrapper with titles missing. A very rare run of 88 issues of this rare periodical. 88 Issues with interruptions in between.

5. [Quine, Willard Van Orman].

Collection of Rare offprints & Rare Books from the personal library of Philosopher Willard Van Orman Quine [″Van”]. Including inscribed and signed dedication – copies from colleagues in the field of Philosophy and Logic [Signed / Inscribed Association copies].

[Cambridge, Mass. and other locations, c. 1975 – c. 1995. Octavo. Original Hardcover with original dustjacket Original Stapled Offprints etc. [The Library of Living Philosophers Volume XVIII].

6. Aiken, Henry David / [Hans Jonas] / Quine, W.V.O.

Typed letter, signed by German-born, American Jewish philosopher Hans Jonas, loosely inserted in Henry David Aiken’s pamphlet “God and Evil: A Study of Some Relations Between Faith and Morals”. The Essay by Aiken is inscribed and signed by Aiken in a sarcastic manner: “To God, from one of his congregation – Shem”. In the letter, Jonas reflects on two pages on an evening with Henry David Aiken and his then wife Lillian Woodworth. In his letter to Aiken, Hans Jonas reports back to Aiken after reading his essay [″God and Evil”] and calls it “a beautiful piece of work – in style and content worthy of your “master” who wrote on natural theology….”. Jonas goes on encouraging Aiken: “you are also dead wrong n not publishing a collection of your essays in ethical theory. If your pal Quine can do it “from a logical point of you [sic]”, so can you “from a moral point of view”. Jonas also mentions “that it is worth writing about the ancient problem opf a theodicy in a contemporary context”. [The Essay is n Offprint from Ethics, An International Journal of Social, Political and Legal Philosophy, Volume LXVIII, No. 2].

New York / Washington, DC, 1958. 16,8 x 24 cm. 21 pages (pages 77-97 of the Journal) plus two page-letter (on one leaf), signed by Hans Jonas Original Offprint / Original TLS (Typed letter signed). Very good+ condition. Stapled. Only minimal signs of staining. The letter also discusses a Reference for one “Ed Sayles” and Jonas suggest that Aiken writes “casual but fairly strong” to Howard R. Bartlett, professor of history and head of the Department of Humanities at MIT.

7. Russell, Bertrand.

Collection of important publications by and on the British Philosopher Bertrand Russell [some of the publications from libraries of important philosophers like Quine]. The collection includes: 1. Bertrand Russell – War – The Offspring of Fear (First Edition – London, 1914) / 2. Bertrand Russell – Ideas that have harmed Mankind – Man’s Unfortunate Experience with his self-made enemies, including sadistic Impulses, Religion, Superstition, Envy, Economic Nationalism, Pride, Racism, Sex Superiority, Creeds and other evil things. (First Edition – Girard (Kansas), 1946) [From the library of Henry David Aiken] / 3. Bertrand Russell – Scientific Method in Philosophy (First Edition – Oxford, 1914) / 4. [Bertrand Russell] Paul Foulkes – Wisdom of the West (London, 1960) / 5. Bertrand Russell – The Analysis of Mind (London, 1951) / 6. Bertrand Russell – “Per Aspera ad Astra” (in: “Science and the Future of Mankind” – together with essays by Albert Einstein, Robert Oppenheimer others, this copy used to belong to the library of Boston’s “Simmons College”) / 7. Ronald Jager – The Development of Bertrand Russell’s Philosophy [From the library of philosopher Willard Van Orman Quine (with inscription and signed by Jager to Quine)] / 8. Quine, Willard Van Orman / Heimpel, Carl G./ Wang, Hao – Symposium – Issue on Bertrand Russell by “The Journal of Philosophy”: ‘The Philosophy of Bertrand Russell’: Willard van Orman Quine – Russell’s Ontological Development / Carl G. Hempel – On Russell’s Phenomenological Constructionism / Hao Wang – Russell and Philosophy // A Historical Survey of Western Philosophy in its Social and Political Setting.

London / Oxford / Den Haag and others, Clarendon Press / Dr.Junk / Allen and Unwin / Macdonald & Co. Ltd., 1914 – 1972. Original Hardcover and Softcover – Bindings. Only one publications iwth some minor damage, otherwise all publications in very good or even better condition with only minor signs of external wear.

8. Toulmin, Stephen.

Manuscript Letter Signed to his friend, professor of Philosophy, Henry Aiken. The letter was sent from Sussex in England and includes information about Toulin’s latest book and his dedication to tirelessly writing together with his wife June Goodfield. June Goodfield has added to the letter as well by alerting Aiken and his wife of Stephen and her coming to Boston again.

Sussex / England, no year [c.July 1968 ?]. Octavo. Two pages. Softcover. Very good condition with only minor signs of wear. Corners torn and some fraying.

9. [Stanley Cavell Collection] – Cavell, Stanley.

The World Viewed – Reflections on the Ontology of Film.

New York, The Viking Press, 1971. 14 cm x 20 cm. XV, 174 pages. Original Hardcover with the rare illustrated dustjacket in protective collector’s Mylar. Very good condition with only minor signs of external wear. Inscribed and signed by Stanley Cavell on the front free endpaper. Several pages have annotations as well as a minor entry on rear pastedown in pencil.

10. Herzl, Theodor.

Philosophische Erzählungen [Mit drei photographischen Postkarten].

Erste Ausgabe. Berlin, Gebrüder Paetel, 1900. 13 cm x 18.5 cm. 244 Seiten. Original Hardcover. Zeitgenössischer, dekorativer Halbleinenband mit originalem Rückenschild. The very rare first edition ! Die fragile Publikation in sehr gutem Zustand. Das Papier etwas gebräunt. Einige wenige Seiten fleckig. Beiliegend drei sehr seltene Postkarten die Theodor Herzl während seiner Reise nach Jerusalem in 1898 zeigen. / With some extremly scarce postcards showing Theodor Herzl on his Trip to Jerusalem in 1898.