David J. Furley

David J. Furley (born February 24, 1922 in Nottingham , † January 26, 2010 in Banbury ) was a British classical philologist .

Life

David John Furley attended Nottingham High School and studied Classical Philology at Jesus College , Cambridge. After completing his bachelor's degree in 1943, he served in Burma during World War II . After the war he continued his studies, obtained his master’s degree in 1946 and became an assistant lecturer at University College London in 1947 , where he rose to become a reader . In 1966 he followed a call as Professor of Classics at Princeton University , where he taught and researched for more than thirty years. From 1974 he was Charles Ewing Professor of Greek Language and Literature . From 1969 to 1982 he headed the university's funding program in the field of ancient philosophy. After his retirement (1992) he moved to Charlbury , England, where he spent his retirement. He died on February 26, 2010 in Banbury Hospital .

Furley was married to Diana Armstrong from 1948 to 1966, with whom he had two children. His son William D. Furley is also a classical philologist. In his second marriage, Furley was married to Phyllis Ross since 1967 († 2009).

Furley's main research focus was ancient philosophy. He dealt intensively with natural philosophy, metaphysics and cosmology , especially the pre-Socratics and Aristotle , and with atomism . He was chairman of the international committee of the Symposium Aristotelicum and president of the Society for Ancient Greek Philosophy . In 1990 he was elected a corresponding member of the British Academy .

bibliography

• The Greek Cosmologists: Volume 1: The Formation of the Atomic Theory and its Earliest Critics , Cambridge 2006.
• Cosmic Problems: Essays on Greek and Roman Philosophy of Nature , Cambridge 2009.

Web links

• Obituary by David Sedley (English)
• Obituary in Town Topics (English)