William James
1842–1910
“Truth is what works. The varieties of religious experience. The will to believe.”
The four dimensions in the 16-axis model where this thinker scores highest. People in this archetype tend to lean the same way.
- TETrust in Experience9 / 10
- POPractical Orientation9 / 10
- VAVital Affirmation7 / 10
- MRMystical Receptivity7 / 10
The six thinkers whose 16-dimensional positions sit closest to this one. Useful as next-reading suggestions.
- Margaret CavendishGARDEN
Vitalist materialism — matter perceives and reasons throughout.
- Carl JungPILGRIM
The collective unconscious. Archetypes. Individuation through facing the shadow.
- Wang YangmingHEARTH
Innate moral knowledge. Knowledge and action are one. Investigate the heart, not external things.
- Niels BohrCARTOGRAPHER
Complementarity — wave and particle held together by the question asked.
- BergsonGARDEN
Duration, not space-time. Élan vital — the creative impulse of life. Intuition over analysis.
- Evan ThompsonCARTOGRAPHER
Mind in Life — enactivism, the autopoietic biology of consciousness.
Concepts where William James sits in the conversation. Each links to a primer.
Side-by-side with other philosophers, dimension by dimension.
Short exercises in the same tradition as William James's thought. Each takes 5–25 minutes.
Three doors lead onward.
- 01 · QUIZThe InheritorFind your archetype — discover whether you'd argue with William James or alongside them.CONTINUE ▶
- 02 · COMPAREWilliam James vs Margaret CavendishOn Mull's map Margaret Cavendish sits closest. See where they agree and where they part.CONTINUE ▶
- 03 · DAILYToday's SparOne philosopher, one topic, five minutes. A new one drops every day.CONTINUE ▶