Alexander Bain
From Philosopedia
Bain, Alexander (1818—1903)
A Scottish philosopher, Bain discussed John Stuart Mill’s Logic with him when it was in manuscript. A teacher of logic in the University of Aberdeen, he was considered obnoxious by the orthodox and was said to provoke disorder among the students.
In 1881 Bain was elected for the first of two times Lord Rector of the university. In discussing free will, he favored physiological over metaphysical explanations and pointed to reflexes as evidence that a form of will, independent of consciousness, inheres in a person’s limbs.
Bain founded Mind, the first psychological journal, in 1886. Although sometimes wrongly described as a positivist, according to Joseph McCabe, Bain was an agnostic who merely agreed with Auguste Comte in the rejection of theology.
