Maria Montessori's metaphysics of life

Abstract

This paper elucidates the core principles of Maria Montessori's metaphysics. Her attention to embryological, evolutionary, and educational development led to her teleological metaphysics of life. Individual organisms are governed by internally driven, perfectionist, discontinuous teleology. And this individual teleology is integrated into a holistic, ecological context whereby individuals' striving towards perfection works for the increased ordered complexity of the systems of which they are parts. Moreover, Montessori extends this metaphysics of life to include nonliving components of nature, such that atoms, planets, and inorganic molecules are governed by the same general teleological structure.

Beginning Reading Instruction: Application of Theory and Research to Practice

“…Constructivism educational views emerge from Piaget and Vygotsky learning theories (Driscoll, 2005;Ozmon & Craver, 2008;Vygotsky, trans. 1978) while pragmatism aligns with Montessori learning theories (Ozmon & Craver, 2008;Frierson, 2017). A pragmatic philosophy holds there can be an absolute truth to reality, what is known, and yet, the reality and knowledge can change when impacted by experience and new knowledge (Driscoll, 2005;Ozmon & Craver, 2008).…”

“…The success links back to the learning theories of Piaget, Vygotsky, and Montessori. Maria Montessori especially had a personal interest in the philosophical writings of William James and would often cite James in her own works (Frierson, 2017).…”

The Moral Philosophy of Maria Montessori

“…At the same time that technological development poses a problem that requires human unity for its solution, ‘Arts, sciences, and products of industry unite’ human beings into ‘a living organism’ (6:47; see also 10:22, 61–63). Montessori develops a complex metaphysics of this unity and sophisticated economic and social accounts of ways we are materially unified whether we accept that unity psychologically or not (see Frierson 2018). The key point, however, is that material conditions create a context within which we ‘communicate with one another with amazing ease’ and ‘no phenomenon can affect one human group without affecting others,’ but we do not yet feel the fact that ‘all mankind forms a single organism,’ and so ‘man continues to live in an emotional world that is outdated’ (10:94).…”

“…Some investigate her philosophy of education, feminism (Babini and Lama 2000), or place in the history of psychology (Babini and Lama 2000; Foschi 2012; Kramer 1975; Trabalzini 2011). But Montessori makes valuable contributions to epistemology (Frierson 2014, 2020), metaphysics (Frierson 2018), philosophy of mind, political philosophy (Adams 2006), and even philosophy of technology. This article focuses on her moral theory.…”

On the inseparability of reasoning and virtue: Madame de Maintenon's Maison royale de Saint‐Louis

“…This point, however, highlights a serious question about understanding thinking as the ownership of thought, what I will call the autonomy question. On the face of it, it is counterintuitive that reading scripted19 See the series of articlesFrierson 2015;2016;2018; 2021. 20 When one reads the nineteenth-century editions of Théophile Lavallée, it seems that Madame de Maintenon was concerned more with the ends of the curriculum than with the pedagogy.…”