Rebecca Goldstein facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Rebecca Goldstein
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Rebecca Newberger
February 23, 1950 White Plains, New York, U.S.
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| Alma mater | Barnard College (BA) Princeton University (PhD) |
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| Institutions | Columbia University Rutgers University Trinity College Harvard University New York University |
Rebecca Goldstein, born Rebecca Newberger on February 23, 1950, is an American philosopher and writer. She is known for her many novels and non-fiction books. She earned her Ph.D. in philosophy from Princeton University. She is often seen as a writer who blends science and philosophy into her stories.
In her non-fiction books, she explores how philosophy and science can work together and make progress. She also developed an idea called "mattering theory." This theory looks at what makes things important to people. It builds on her earlier idea of "the mattering map" from her novel The Mind–Body Problem. This idea has been used in different fields like psychology.
Goldstein has received many honors for her work. These include the MacArthur Fellowship, the National Humanities Medal, and the National Jewish Book Award.
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Early Life and Education
Rebecca Newberger Goldstein grew up in White Plains, New York. She was part of an Orthodox Jewish family. She has an older brother who is a rabbi and a younger sister.
She studied at several colleges, including City College of New York and UCLA. She graduated from Barnard College in 1972 as the top student. After that, she earned her Ph.D. in philosophy from Princeton University. Her studies focused on how the mind works. She then returned to Barnard College to teach philosophy.
Writing Career and Books
In 1983, Goldstein published her first novel, The Mind-Body Problem. This book mixes humor with serious ideas. It explores the struggle between feelings and intelligence. It also looks at the challenges smart women face and Jewish traditions. Goldstein said she wanted to put "real life" into intellectual discussions.
Her second novel, The Late-Summer Passion of a Woman of Mind (1989), was also set in a university. Her third novel, The Dark Sister (1993), was a fictional story about the life of William James, a famous philosopher.
She then released a collection of short stories called Strange Attractors (1993). This book was recognized as a notable book by The New York Times. Characters from these stories later became the main characters in her novel Mazel (1995). Mazel won the National Jewish Book Award.
In 1996, Goldstein received a special award called the MacArthur Fellowship. This helped her write Properties of Light (2000). This novel is a ghost story that combines themes of love and betrayal with quantum physics.
Her most recent novel is 36 Arguments for the Existence of God: A Work of Fiction (2010). This book explores debates about religion and reason. It tells the story of a psychology professor who writes a best-selling book about atheism. National Public Radio chose it as one of their favorite books of 2010.
Goldstein has also written two non-fiction books about famous thinkers. These are Incompleteness: The Proof and Paradox of Kurt Gödel (2005) and Betraying Spinoza: The Renegade Jew Who Gave Us Modernity (2006). Betraying Spinoza combines her interest in Jewish history with a focus on secularism and humanism. This book helped her become a leading voice in the humanist movement.
In 2014, she published Plato at the Googleplex: Why Philosophy Won't Go Away. This book explores the history of philosophy and why it is still important today.
Teaching and Public Speaking
Besides Barnard, Goldstein has taught at other universities. These include Columbia University, Rutgers University, and Trinity College (Connecticut). Since 2014, she has been a visiting professor in London. In 2016, she taught at New York University.
She also gives talks and lectures. In 2011, she gave important lectures at Yale University about philosophy and literature. She is part of the Council on Values for the World Economic Forum. She also advises the Secular Coalition for America.
Goldstein's writings have appeared in many well-known magazines and newspapers. These include The Atlantic, The New York Times Book Review, and The Wall Street Journal.
Personal Life
Rebecca Goldstein married physicist Sheldon Goldstein in 1969. They later divorced in 1999. They have two daughters: Yael Goldstein Love, who is a novelist, and Danielle Blau, who is a poet.
In an interview, Goldstein shared a bit about her journey with faith. She said that she lived as an Orthodox Jew for a long time. She kept her religious practices, especially for her children. She felt a strong pull between her faith and her changing beliefs. Eventually, she became an atheist.
In 2007, Goldstein married Steven Pinker, a cognitive psychologist.
Awards and Honors
Rebecca Goldstein has received many awards and fellowships for her work:
- 2014 National Humanities Medal (presented by President Barack Obama)
- 2014 Richard Dawkins Award
- 2013 Montgomery Fellow, Dartmouth College
- 2013 Moment Magazine Creativity Award
- 2012 Franke Visiting Fellow, Whitney Humanities Center, Yale University
- 2011 Humanist of the Year by the American Humanist Association
- 2011 Freethought Heroine by the Freedom from Religion Foundation
- 2011 Miller Scholar, Santa Fe Institute
- Best Fiction Book of 2010 for 36 Arguments for the Existence of God by the Christian Science Monitor
- Humanist Laureate by the International Academy of Humanism, 2008
- Fellow, Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study at Harvard University, 2006–2007
- Guggenheim Fellow, 2006–2007
- Koret Jewish Book Award in Jewish Thought, 2006, for Betraying Spinoza
- Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, 2005
- MacArthur Fellow, 1996
- National Jewish Book Award, 1995, for Mazel
- Edward Lewis Wallant Award, 1995, for Mazel
- Whiting Award, 1991
See also
- American philosophy
- List of American philosophers
- List of novelists from the United States
- Philosophical fiction
