BERGSON, HENRI. — Philosopher, born in Paris on 18 Oct. 1859 into a Jewish family of Irish origin, died there on 4 Jan. 1941. A pupil of Ollé-Laprune and Boutroux at the École normale supérieure, where he later taught (1897–1900), he obtained his doctorate in 1889 with the discussion of his celebrated thesis Essai sur les données immédiates de la conscience (Paris 1889). This was followed, among other shorter writings, by Matière et mémoire (1896), Le rire (1900), and L’évolution créatrice (1907), all published in Paris. In 1900 he was called to the Collège de France, where he remained, an acclaimed master, until 1924, when he retired of his own accord. In 1928 he was awarded the Nobel Prize. Other principal works: Durée et simultanéité, à propos de la théorie d’Einstein (1922), Les deux sources de la morale et de la religion (1932). Essays, studies, and lectures are collected in the two volumes L’énergie spirituelle (1919) and La pensée et le mouvant (1934).
Bergognone — Carthusians following Christ.