The twentieth century may be thought of as the century for Dewey, but it was the era of Mortimer Adler. The Adler Era was considered this partly because of his longevity but also included his authority within philosophy. As I began thinking about Adler and his contributions to the world of thought, I began considering him as an extra-ordinary person that lived life fully; yet, instead of slowing down to enjoy his “golden years” it is, in my opinion that he began to work harder as his years progressed. As Adler developed his thoughts and beliefs, he became a believer in absolute and universal truths and values; these truths and values include, but are not limited to, equal opportunity in the classroom for all students, regardless of his or her race, creed, color or economic background.
Biographic Information:
Mortimer Adler was born in 1902 in New York City to an immigrant jewelry salesman. At the age of fourteen, Adler quit school to begin working at New York Sun as a copy boy as he began dreaming of becoming a journalist. In hopes to become a great writer with better skills and to fulfill his longing, Adler soon began a night class at Columbia University. Columbia is where he first became in love with what later became The Great Books. One of the first encounters with philosophy was by reading the autobiography of John Stuart Mill and discovered that Mill had read Plato at the young age of five. Adler soon became captivated by Plato’s work, and began taking philosophy courses at Columbia University. Adler was greatly engrossed by philosophy and the great philosophers that he failed to complete a mandatory physical education course, which ended in the non-completion of his bachelor’s degree. Fascinatingly enough, a few years later, he was awarded a ...