Roy Wood Sellars

Roy Wood Sellars was a Canadian-born American philosopher renowned for his contributions to critical realism and religious humanism. Born in Seaforth, Ontario, he later moved to the United States, where he pursued his education at the University of Michigan, earning both a B.A. and a Ph.D. He dedicated over four decades to teaching at the same institution, influencing generations of students and scholars. Sellars was particularly noted for his advocacy of naturalistic emergent evolution, a concept he referred to as evolutionary naturalism, which he elaborated on in his seminal 1922 work, 'Evolutionary Naturalism.' In his later writings, including 'Reflections on American Philosophy From Within' published in 1969, he expanded on his views regarding materialism, coining the term evolutionary materialism to describe his philosophical stance. In addition to his philosophical writings, Sellars played a significant role in the humanist movement, contributing to the drafting of the original Humanist Manifesto in 1933 and endorsing Humanist Manifesto II shortly before his death in 1973. His commitment to socialism reflected his belief in a democratic economic organization that maximized justice and liberty. As the father of philosopher Wilfrid Sellars, Roy Wood Sellars left a lasting legacy in both philosophy and the humanist tradition, influencing the discourse on the intersection of science, philosophy, and social justice.