Will Durant
William James Durant was an influential American philosopher and historian, born in 1885 in North Adams, Massachusetts. He initially pursued a career in education, teaching various subjects at Seton Hall College and later at the Ferrer Modern School. Durant's early commitment to becoming a Catholic priest shifted as he embraced more radical beliefs, ultimately leading him to focus on philosophy and social issues. He earned a Ph.D. in philosophy from Columbia University in 1917, and his first book, "Philosophy and the Social Problem," emerged from his dissertation.
Durant gained significant acclaim with the publication of "The Story of Philosophy" in 1926, which became a bestseller and enabled him to retire from teaching. He then devoted himself to his long-cherished project, "The Story of Civilization," a comprehensive multivolume history of the world. His collaboration with his wife, Ariel Kaufman, yielded several volumes, and they were recognized for their contributions with the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1977. Beyond his literary achievements, Durant was a vocal advocate for women's rights and labor reform, reflecting his broader commitment to social justice. He passed away in 1981, shortly after the death of his wife.
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Will Durant
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- Born: November 5, 1885
- Birthplace: North Adams, Massachusetts
- Died: November 7, 1981
- Place of death: Los Angeles, California
Biography
William James Durant, the son of Joseph Durant and Marie Allors, was born in North Adams, Massachusetts, in 1885. Will’s father, a celluloid plant supervisor, had immigrated to the United States from Quebec, Canada. Will Durant completed high school at Saint Peter’s Academy in Jersey City, New Jersey. He then earned an undergraduate degree from Saint Peter’s College in 1907 and worked for a short time as a reporter for the New York Evening Journal. Between 1907 and 1908, he taught Latin, French, English, and geometry at Seton Hall College.
In 1908, Durant enrolled in the seminary program at Seton Hall with the idea of becoming a Catholic priest. By 1910, he had decided that his radical beliefs were no longer consistent with becoming a priest. After leaving Seton Hall in 1911, Durant accepted a teaching position at the Ferrer Modern School in New York City. During the summer of 1911, he toured Europe to expand his horizons and better prepare himself for his teaching job.
While teaching at Ferrer in 1912, one of his students was Ida Kaufman. They soon fell in love and were married in 1913. Durant was twenty-eight years old and Kaufman was only fifteen. At first, Durant nicknamed his wife Puck, and then Ariel, the name that she legally adopted—both nicknames coming from characters in the plays of William Shakespeare. After the marriage, Durant resigned his teaching position at Ferrer and began lecturing at the Labor Temple, an adult education project sponsored by the Presbyterian Church. During the same period of time, Durant attended graduate school at Columbia University. In 1917, he completed his Ph.D. in philosophy. His dissertation, Philosophy and the Social Problem, was published as his first book. In 1919, the Durants had a daughter, Ethel.
After teaching for a brief time at Columbia University, Durant became the director of the Labor Temple School in 1921. He taught philosophy, psychology, music, and art at the Labor Temple. At the request of Emanuel Haldeman-Julius, publisher of the Little Blue Books, Durant compiled a set of eleven essays on important philosophers, including Plato, Aristotle, Voltaire, and Immanuel Kant. In 1926, the essays were published by Simon and Schuster as The Story of Philosophy, which became a best seller. The profits from that book allowed Durant to retire from teaching. In 1928, the Durants moved to Great Neck, New York.
By 1929, Durant was putting most of his time and energy into a project that he had originally dreamed about in 1904, a multivolume, integrated history of the world that he called The Story of Civilization. By 1930, Durant’s wife had become his literary assistant. The first volume of The Story of Civilization, Our Oriental Heritage, was published in 1935. In 1943, the Durants moved to California, to the Hollywood hills, where they continued their work on The Story of Civilization. From the seventh volume of The Story of Civilization, The Age of Reason Begins, until the eleventh and last one, The Age of Napoleon, the Durants appeared as coauthors.
In 1977, the Durants published their love story, A Dual Autobiography. That same year, they were presented the prestigious Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Gerald Ford. Well known as a philosopher and a historian, Will Durant was also known as a strong advocate for women’s suffrage, equal wages, and fairer working conditions for the American labor force. He passed away in 1981, less than two weeks after Ariel had died.