About Graham Priest

Graham Brooklyn Bridge 1 copy
Photo by Maureen Eckert.
Graham Priest grew up as a working class kid in South London. He read mathematics and (and a little bit of of logic) at St. John’s College, Cambridge. He obtained his doctorate in mathematics at the London School of Economics. By that time, he had come to the conclusion that philosophy was more fun than mathematics. So, luckily, he got his first job (in 1974) in a philosophy department, as a  temporary lecturer in the Department of Logic and Metaphysics  at the University of St Andrews.
The first permanent job he was offered was at the University of Western Australia. He moved to Australia when he took up the position, and has spent most of his working life there. After 12 years at the University of Western Australia, he moved to take up the chair of philosophy at the University of Queensland, and after 12 years there, he moved again to take up the Boyce Gibson Chair of Philosophy at  Melbourne University, where he is now emeritus.  While he was there, he was a Fellow of  Ormond College.  During the Melbourne years, he was also an Arché Professorial Fellow at the University of St Andrews. He is a past president of the Australasian Association for Logic external-01, and the Australasian Association of Philosophy external-01, of which he was Chair of Council  for 13 years. He was elected a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Humanities external-01 in 1995, and awarded a Doctor of Letters by the University of Melbourne in 2002. In 2009 he took up the position of Distinguished Professor at the Graduate Center external-01, City University of New York, where he now lives and works.
Graham has published in nearly every leading logic and philosophy journal. At the last count, he had published about 240 papers external-01. He has also published six monographs external-01 (mostly with Oxford University Press), as well as a number of edited collections external-01. Much of his work has been in logic, especially non-classical logic, and related areas. He is perhaps best know for his work on dialetheism external-01, the view that  some contradictions are true. However, he has also published widely in many other areas, such as metaphysicsBuddhist philosophy, and the history of philosophy, both East and West.
Graham has travelled widely external-01, lecturing and addressing conferences in every continent except Antarctica.  For many years, he practiced karatedo. He is a third dan in Shobukai external-01, and a fourth dan in Shitoryu (awarded by the head of style, Sensei Mabuni Kenei external-01 in Osaka, when he was training there). Before he left Australia he was an Australian National kumite referee external-01 and kata judge external-01. Nowadays, he swims and practices taichi. He loves (good external-01) operajazz external-01, and 60s rock external-01… and East Asian art.

Header Image by Dario Borim.