G. E. Moore
English philosopher, initiator of analytic philosophy, advocate of common sense.
George Edward Moore (4 November 1873 – 24 October 1958) was an English philosopher and a founder of analytic philosophy, alongside Bertrand Russell, Ludwig Wittgenstein, and earlier Gottlob Frege. With Russell, he helped shift British philosophy away from the idealism that had dominated it, championing common-sense ideas and making key contributions to ethics, epistemology, and metaphysics. He served as Professor of Philosophy at the University of Cambridge and edited the journal *Mind*.
Born in Upper Norwood, south-east London, Moore was the middle child of seven. His father, Daniel Moore, was a doctor; his mother was Henrietta Sturge. His grandfather, also George Moore, was a physician, writer, and British Israelite, and his eldest brother, Thomas Sturge Moore, was a poet, writer, and engraver. Educated at Dulwich College, he entered Trinity College, Cambridge in 1892 to study classics and moral sciences, earning a double first in his tripos. He became a Fellow of Trinity in 1898 and later served as Cambridge’s Professor of Mental Philosophy and Logic from 1925 to 1939.
Moore was known for his exceptional personality and moral character; Ray Monk called him “the most revered philosopher of his era.” He was a member of the Cambridge Apostles from 1894 to 1901, a fellow of the British Academy from 1918, and chaired the Cambridge University Moral Sciences Club from 1912 to 1944. A humanist, he presided over the British Ethical Union (now Humanists UK) in 1935–1936. He also chaired the Aristotelian Society from 1918 to 1919. In 1951, he was appointed to the Order of Merit by King George VI at Buckingham Palace; after the ceremony, he told his wife that the King had never heard of Wittgenstein. Moore suggested the title of Wittgenstein’s *Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus*, borrowing from Spinoza’s *Tractatus Theologico-Politicus*.
He influenced but kept his distance from the Bloomsbury Group. Bertrand Russell, a fellow Apostle, wrote that he “almost worship him as if he were a god” and later said Moore “fulfilled my ideal of genius.” Moore is now best known for defending ethical non-naturalism, his common-sense philosophical method, and the paradox named after him. His essays are noted for their clarity, circumspection, and methodical treatment of problems. He criticized modern philosophy for lacking the progress seen in natural sciences since the Renaissance. His major works include *Principia Ethica* and the essays “The Refutation of Idealism,” “A Defence of Common Sense,” and “A Proof of the External World.”
In ethics, *Principia Ethica* inspired a reaction against ethical naturalism and helped spark twentieth-century interest in metaethics. Moore identified the naturalistic fallacy: confusing the use of a term in an argument with its definition. For example, saying pleasant things are good does not define ‘good.’ He argued that ‘goodness’ cannot be defined—only shown and grasped. His open-question argument holds that statements like “Anything pleasant is also good” remain open to the question “Is it good that x is pleasant?” no matter what replaces “pleasure,” showing that any analysis of value must fail.
Moore died in the Evelyn Nursing Home in England on 24 October 1958. He was cremated at Cambridge Crematorium on 28 October, and his ashes were interred at the Parish of the Ascension Burial Ground. His wife, Dorothy Ely (1892–1977), was buried there. They had two sons: the poet Nicholas Moore and the composer Timothy Moore.
- born
- 4 November 1873, Upper Norwood, London
- died
- 24 October 1958, England
- field
- Philosophy (ethics, epistemology, metaphysics)
- nationality
- English
- known_for
- Ethical non-naturalism, common-sense philosophy, the naturalistic fallacy, the open-question argument, the paradox that bears his name
Lore & Background
George Edward Moore was born in Upper Norwood, London, on 4 November 1873, the middle child of seven. He was educated at Dulwich College and began attending Trinity College, Cambridge in 1892, where he studied classics and moral sciences, achieving a double first. He became a Fellow of Trinity in 1898 and later served as Professor of Mental Philosophy and Logic at Cambridge from 1925 to 1939.
Moore was a member of the secretive Cambridge Apostles from 1894 to 1901, where fellow member Bertrand Russell wrote that he 'almost worship him as if he were a god.' He traveled to Norway in 1914 to visit Wittgenstein, taking notes later published as Notes dictated to G.E. Moore in Norway. He was chairman of the Aristotelian Society from 1918 to 1919, a fellow of the British Academy from 1918, and chairman of the Cambridge University Moral Sciences Club from 1912 to 1944. A humanist, he presided over the British Ethical Union in 1935–1936. He was appointed to the Order of Merit in 1951, awarded by King George VI.
Moore is best known for his work Principia Ethica and essays such as 'The Refutation of Idealism,' 'A Defence of Common Sense,' and 'A Proof of the External World.' He argued that 'good' is indefinable and a non-natural property, and that ethical arguments can suffer from the naturalistic fallacy. He died in England on 24 October 1958 and was cremated at Cambridge Crematorium.
Reader's Guide
Moore's significance lies in his role as a founder of analytic philosophy, shifting British philosophy away from idealism toward common-sense realism. His ethical non-naturalism, articulated in Principia Ethica, argued that 'good' is a simple, indefinable, non-natural property, and that attempts to define it commit the naturalistic fallacy. The open-question argument, presented in §13 of that work, contends that any analysis of value fails because questions like 'Is it good that x is pleasant?' remain open and significant. Moore also emphasized moral intuitions as self-evident propositions, leading later writers to label him an ethical intuitionist, though he distinguished his view from earlier intuitionism.
His essays are noted for clarity and methodical treatment of philosophical problems. He was critical of modern philosophy's lack of progress compared to the natural sciences. Moore influenced the Bloomsbury Group but abstained from it, and was described by Ray Monk as 'the most revered philosopher of his era.' Despite his contemporary fame, he is now mostly known among academic philosophers. His legacy includes the paradox that bears his name and his defense of common sense as a philosophical method.
Did You Know?
- Moore was a member of the Cambridge Apostles from 1894 to 1901, where Bertrand Russell wrote that he 'almost worship him as if he were a god.'
- The title of Ludwig Wittgenstein's Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus was adopted at Moore's suggestion, taking the title from Baruch Spinoza's Tractatus Theologico-Politicus.
- Moore was appointed to the Order of Merit in 1951 by King George VI, and after the ceremony told his wife that the King had never heard of Wittgenstein.
- He presided over the British Ethical Union (now Humanists UK) in 1935–1936.
Notable Quotes (Wikiquote)
"Principia Ethica (1903; revised edition, Cambridge University Press, 1993)." — G. E. Moore "Proof of an External World," Proceedings of the British Academy 25 (1939)." — G. E. Moore "It is raining but I do not believe that it is." — G. E. Moore "It is raining but I don't believe that it is." — G. E. Moore
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