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William James Research Paper

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There are many great names that stand out when going through the history of Psychology. There is one name that stands out for American psychology, that name is William James. James who is often referred to as the father of american psychology. The work of William James provides mean and encourages us to be open to experiences. William James was a psychologist, philosopher, doctor, and journalist who had a great major impact on the we look at the world, the body and the mind. William James was born into a wealthy family in New York on 1842. William James grandfather was one of the richest people in the U.S, Williams father inherited a good amount of the money. William James was the oldest of his five brothers and sisters. His father, Henry James Sr. was a philosopher. James schooling took place in New York City early in his life, but he also attended schools in France, Switzerland, Germany, and England. William James as a child had dreams of becoming a painter. Around the year 1858, while the family was living in Newport, Rhode Island, James studied painting for a year with William Morris Hunt. After, he decided not to pursue painting as a career. …show more content…

James then decided to transfer to Harvard's medical school in 1864. James was unhappy with medicine and took a break from school. The next year in 1865 he joined Louis Agassiz in his expedition to the Amazon basin. “I was, body and soul, in a more indescribably hopeless, homeless and friendless state than I ever want to be in again,” James wrote about his experience in his book The Letters of William James. James was going through health issues and he decided to not partake in anymore time in the Amazon. So after eight months in the Amazon he then traveled and spent the next two years in Germany and France. James studied with Hermann von Helmholtz, he became heavily interested the psychology during this

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