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Occupation: William James was a professor at Harvard University, and he taught a variety of things while he was there. He originally was there to teach medicine, physiology, and medicine, but he was more interested in things like the science of the human mind. This is why he took up psychology and philosophy in a time where both subjects were just getting themselves onto their feet. He was one of the most well known teachers of pragmatism, and his teachings on that have become some of the basics of the belief. He ended up still teaching at Harvard, but instead of teaching medicine, he found his true calling and starting to teach psychology and philosophy.

Position on Issue: James was a staunch believer in the idea of anti-imperialism as he was on the anti-imperialism league. He was one of the main contributors to the idea of pragmatism and this most likely contributed to his position on this issue because its about making intelligent and logical decisions based on experience. James problem was that imperialism wasn't the logical idea based on experience. He thought that it would lead to bad decisions and that it was not the right way for our country to go. He believed that the Philippines should be able to be their own country and be independent because they should be, and it was not the United States's right to take them. He was against the big institutions taking over the smaller people or things, and that would be exactly like the United States taking over the Philippines.

Reasons for Interest in the Topic: James has an interest in the topic because of his interest in philosophy and how the human mind works scientifically. His interest in pragmatism sparked his rebellion against imperialism and the big taking over the small. The idea of freedom was one of the main ideas that he had and that idea would be greatly jeopardized if the Philippines were forced to be annexed. This value of freedom has been part of our country since the beginning when we fought for our independence from Britain. This pragmatic value is had because he believes that we have the experience from not only our war with Britain, but also our wars with other countries who wanted something from us, and we fought for our rights. Because we have done this before and we know that it is not right to be done, we should not do the same things to a country that does not deserve it to be done to them. His beliefs in pragmatism and philosophy have made him want to keep the values of our country in mind when we make decisions for our country.

Bibliography: "American Anti-Imperialist League - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia." //Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia//. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Nov. 2012. .

Koopman, Colin. "William James's Politics of Personal Freedom." //Society for the Advancement of American Philosophy//. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Nov. 2012. .

"William James - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia." //Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia//. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Nov. 2012. .