Gordon Park Baker

Gordon Park Baker (born at Englewood, New Jersey, 20 April 1938; died at Woodstock, Oxfordshire, 25 June 2002) was an American-English philosopher. His topics of interest included Ludwig Wittgenstein, Gottlob Frege, Friedrich Waismann, Bertrand Russell, the Vienna Circle, and René Descartes. He was noted for his collaboration with Peter Hacker and his disagreements with Michael Dummett.

He was educated at Phillips Exeter Academy, Harvard University (major in mathematics), and, as a Marshall Scholar, at The Queen's College, Oxford, where he intended to read Philosophy, Politics, and Economics but transferred to Literae Humaniores (1960). He pursued his doctorate (1963-70) while teaching at the University of Kent and latterly as a Fellow of St John's College, Oxford.

He was a Trustee of the Waismann Fund.

His other interests included real tennis and the harpsichord.

He was married to Ann Pimlott (1964), with whom he had three sons, Alan, Geoffrey, and Nicholas. Alan is currently a professor of philosophy at Swarthmore College. From 1992 until his death the philosopher Katherine Morris (Mansfield College, Oxford) was his acknowledged companion.

Bibliography

1. Wittgenstein : Understanding and Meaning, Volume 1 of an analytical commentary on the Philosophical Investigations (Blackwell, Oxford, and Chicago University Press, Chicago, 1980)(ISBN 0-631-12111-0)(ISBN 1-4051-0176-8)(ISBN 1-4051-1987-X), co-authored with P.M.S Hacker.
2. Frege : Logical Excavations, (Blackwell, Oxford, O.U.P., N.Y., 1984) (ISBN 0-19-503261-6) co-authored with P.M.S Hacker.
3. Language, Sense and Nonsense, a critical investigation into modern theories of language (Blackwell, 1984) (ISBN 0-631-13519-7) co-authored with P.M.S Hacker.
4. Scepticism, Rules and Language (Blackwell, 1984) (ISBN 0-631-13614-2) co-authored with P.M.S Hacker.
5. Wittgenstein : Rules, Grammar, and Necessity - Volume 2 of an analytical commentary on the Philosophical Investigations (Blackwell, Oxford, UK and Cambridge, Mass. USA, 1985) (ISBN 0-631-13024-1)(ISBN 0-631-16188-0) co-authored with P.M.S Hacker.

See also

• American philosophy
• List of American philosophers

Persondata
Name	Baker, Gordon Park
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	20 April 1938
Place of birth
Date of death	25 June 2002
Place of death