E. J. Lowe (1950-2014) - Some Personal Recollections

The philosophical year 2014 had a very sad beginning, as the start of this week brought the tragic news of Jonathan Lowe’s death at the age of 63. Professor Lowe had various contacts with Finland, and during recent years, many of us here got to know his deep wisdom, warm friendliness, and kind generosity. Among many other things, he was a great contemporary metaphysician. The Durham Department’s memorial notice by Robin Hendry and Matthew Radcliffe has been published by Brian Leiter. In the following, I shall present some personal recollections.

I had already been reading some of Jonathan’s work when I came into personal contact with him. This happened in March 2006 when he wrote to me in relation to Tuomas Tahko’s AHRC doctoral research funding application. Jonathan was named as the first referee, and I was the second, having earlier supervised Tuomas’s master’s thesis at the University of Helsinki. These official dealings with Jonathan soon led to discussions of more substantial matters, as well as of possible forms of co-operation.

On behalf of the Academy of Finland research project The Nature of Philosophical Knowledge led by Professor Leila Haaparanta at the University of Tampere, I then got to invite Jonathan to our metaphilosophical congress on Philosophy as a Discipline. The event took place on 7-8 September 2006, and Jonathan came with his wife Susan, giving a talk on “Metaphysical Realism, Essentialism, and the Grounds of Modal Knowledge”. The congress was also attended by S. Albert Kivinen, who has done much over the decades in Helsinki to further metaphysics.

Soon after Jonathan’s first visit to Finland, Leila Haaparanta’s new project The Possibility of Metaphysics in Twentieth Century and Contemporary Philosophy got a four-year funding from the Academy of Finland. During spring 2007, I gave lecture courses on The Metaphysics of Universals and Particulars in both Helsinki and Tampere, incorporating Jonathan’s four-category ontology into the curriculum, and continuing discussions with him.

In June 2007, I met Jonathan again at Trondheim, where Jonathan Knowles organized a workshop on Metaphysics and Naturalism. In attendance were also Hilary Kornblith and Alexander Bird. Sharing accommodation and a means of transportation with these speakers led to a very nice and intellectually stimulating experience. It was also highly interesting to observe the way in which Jonathan discussed various aspects of his position with Hilary and Alex.

In September 2007, the Academy project on the possibility of metaphysics started a research seminar which focused on a close reading of Jonathan’s book on The Four-Category Ontology. A highly valuable addition to the seminar was the possibility of turning directly to Jonathan in connection with puzzling issues. As was his way, Jonathan responded lengthily, carefully explaining all the relevant details, and sending his own related research papers as further clarifications. In connection with the seminar, Markku Keinänen was also invited from Helsinki to Tampere to participate in the meetings.

In November 2007, I made my first visit to Durham. Jonathan was an incredibly kind and generous host, arranging time to meet me for discussions at his office as well as in various cafés and restaurants. He introduced me to his colleagues and offered the use of a working space at the department. On some evenings, I was invited to his home, where Susan displayed an impressive ability to conjure up delicious vegetarian dishes.

My first visit ended with a memorable grand finale, and a true Harry Potter moment, as I got a seat at high table next to Jonathan and Susan, participating in a University College dinner at Durham Castle’s Great Hall. The castle is situated opposite to the magnificent Durham Cathedral, and for my final night after the dinner, I got to stay in the castle’s wonderful Chaplain’s Suite with no less than four beds. Having my breakfast served at my very own private table on the castle corridor right outside the suite gave me a final taste of the magic of Durham of which Jonathan was an essential part.

In May 2009 Jonathan then came to Tampere to give a State of the Art course on metaphysics in the context of the Finnish Doctoral Programme of Philosophy. After Jonathan’s second visit to Finland, I made a second trip to Durham later in the year, again in November. Jonathan’s third visit to Finland took place a year after that, in October 2010, in connection with a workshop on E. J. Lowe’s Metaphysics organized at the University of Turku. On this occasion, I presented a paper with the title “Notes on Persons as Primitive Substances”, and sadly, met Jonathan for the last time.

I remember the excitement of coming to contact with Jonathan’s writings after my earlier research related with Quine’s austere ontology. For me, the desert landscape suddenly came alive with all kinds of inspiring possibilities and richer conceptual horizons. In Finland, Jonathan was an important background figure in Haaparanta’s Possibility of Metaphysics project, and his influence continues also in her current Academy project Judgement and Human Rationality. For the formation of Dynamis – The Finnish Network for Metaphysics, Jonathan was also significant, as most of the initial members were directly in contact with him over recent years. In various ways, Jonathan’s work lives on, and he is missed by many.