
Henri Bergson, a French philosopher of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, remains one of the most intriguing figures in the philosophical world.
During Bergson’s lifetime, science underwent major breakthroughs: physicists measured the speed of light, developed the theory of relativity, and laid the groundwork for quantum mechanics.
These developments significantly shaped the intellectual landscape, but Bergson challenged them in his unique way.
He recognized the importance of scientific discoveries and their role in organizing knowledge.
But he didn’t believe that science, with all its advances, could not fully explain the complexity of human experience.
He saw science as a valuable intellectual tool—especially for understanding the physical world—but he believed it fell short in capturing the more fluid, subjective aspects of existence, such as time and consciousness.
In essence, Bergson viewed science as an effective way to organize our understanding of the world, but not the final answer to the mysteries of reality.
Bergson’s metaphysical inquiries were designed to explore these deeper dimensions, pushing beyond the rigid frameworks of measurement and calculation.

Bergson and Evolution: The Intersection of Free Will and Nature
Bergson’s philosophy also took a unique stance on the intersection of evolution and free will.
During his time, the concept of evolution, as proposed by Darwin, was revolutionizing biology.
Many thinkers, influenced by the idea of natural selection, argued that life was fully determined by biological processes.
For them, human behavior and choices were just the result of evolution and genetic programming.
Bergson disagreed with this determinism.
He believed that while evolutionary processes were important, they did not fully explain human life.
For him, human beings were not just the products of their biological makeup but had an inherent ability to create and change.
He emphasized free will as an essential part of the human experience.
This philosophical stance was important, as it countered the prevailing deterministic views of his time.

The Bergson-Einstein Debate on Time
The most famous intellectual clash in Bergson’s career was his debate with Albert Einstein over the nature of time.
Einstein, with his theory of relativity, wrote that time was a dimension much like space, forming a “block universe” where past, present, and future all coexist.
Time, for Einstein, was something measurable and objective—an element of the physical universe that could be observed and calculated.
Bergson, however, rejected this mechanical view of time. He argued that time was not something abstract or external, but something we experience directly, moment by moment.
For Bergson, time wasn’t about measurements and calculations; it was about change and novelty.
Time, as we live it, flows continuously. He viewed clocks and other time-measuring devices as mere tools to organize our experiences, but not as accurate reflections of how we truly experience time.
This debate between Einstein and Bergson was not just about science versus philosophy; it was a deep question about the nature of reality itself.
While Einstein’s model of time continues to dominate modern physics, Bergson’s critique remains an important philosophical perspective—one that questions whether science’s abstract measurements can ever fully capture the fluidity of our lived experience.

Bergson’s Influence on Later Philosophers
Although Bergson’s popularity waned after his death, his ideas have continued to resonate with later philosophers.
One of the most notable figures influenced by Bergson was Martin Heidegger, the German philosopher whose existential and phenomenological ideas were deeply shaped by Bergson’s thoughts on time and change.
Heidegger, in particular, took Bergson’s focus on lived experience and the passage of time and incorporated it into his own philosophy of being.
Bergson’s critique of scientific determinism and his exploration of free will also influenced other thinkers in the 20th century.
Even if Bergson is not widely read today, his ideas still carry weight in contemporary philosophical discussions, particularly those that engage with the relationship between science, experience, and metaphysics.

Revisiting Bergson in the Context of Modern Science
In the 21st century, Bergson’s ideas are finding new relevance, especially as modern science itself is beginning to question the limits of traditional views of reality.
Philosophers like Donald Hoffman, for example, have challenged the assumption that our perception of the world is an accurate reflection of objective reality.
Hoffman’s ideas echo Bergson’s emphasis on the subjective nature of experience.
Like Bergson, he suggests that what we perceive is not the ultimate reality, but rather a constructed experience shaped by our minds.
These modern critiques of scientific realism draw on many of Bergson’s key ideas, particularly his insistence that human experience is something more than just a series of measurable facts.
Here is a comparison table outlining the key ideas of Henri Bergson and those of Albert Einstein and other scientists regarding concepts like time, experience, and the nature of reality.
Comparison
This table highlights the major differences between Bergson’s ideas and the views of Einstein and other scientists, especially regarding time, human experience, and free will.
Einstein and most physicists have a mathematical and objective view of time, Bergson offers a subjective, experiential perspective.
Concept | Henri Bergson | Albert Einstein | Other Scientists |
---|---|---|---|
Nature of Time | Time is a continuous flow, experienced subjectively. It is not fully measurable by clocks or external devices. | Time is a dimension within the space-time continuum, measurable and objective. It exists independently of human perception. | Similar to Einstein, many physicists see time as a measurable dimension within the fabric of space-time. |
Experience of Time | Time is something we live, and it is characterized by change and novelty. The passage of time is felt through lived experience. | Time, in relativity, is part of a block universe where past, present, and future exist simultaneously. Time is external and measurable. | Many physicists follow Einstein’s view, treating time as a constant in mathematical models and physical laws. |
Role of Measurement | Clocks and other measurements are tools to organize time but do not reflect how time is truly experienced. | Measurement of time is an objective process, crucial for understanding the universe and predicting phenomena. | Most scientists, like Newton and others, view time measurement as a fundamental tool for understanding the physical world. |
The Flow of Time | Time is qualitative, marked by creative change and unfolding events; it is not static. | Time is quantitative, existing as a static fourth dimension in space-time. It doesn’t change, but objects move through it. | Physicists generally agree with Einstein that time is a fixed dimension, though quantum mechanics introduces some flexibility in how time behaves. |
Free Will and Evolution | Emphasizes human creativity and free will, suggesting that human agency transcends deterministic evolutionary processes. | Less emphasis on free will, focusing instead on the deterministic laws of physics, including in biological evolution. | Evolutionary biologists, like Darwin, argue that human behavior is largely shaped by evolutionary forces, often minimizing the role of free will. |
Philosophical Stance | A phenomenologist and metaphysicist, focused on the lived experience of time and consciousness. | A physicist focused on discovering universal laws through mathematics and empirical data. | Scientists, particularly in the realm of physics, tend to be more empirical and less concerned with subjective experience, instead focusing on objective measurement and prediction. |
Impact on Philosophy | Influenced existentialism, phenomenology, and existential psychology (e.g., Heidegger). | Major influence on modern physics, especially in the development of relativity theory, quantum mechanics, and cosmology. | Many scientists build on Einstein’s work, with some, like Niels Bohr and Werner Heisenberg, contributing to the development of quantum mechanics, which also challenges notions of determinism and time. |
The Block Universe | Rejected the block universe view, emphasizing that time is dynamic and subjective, not a static structure. | Supported the block universe theory, where time exists as a dimension within space-time and is not altered by human experience. | Most scientists, including physicists like Stephen Hawking, have supported the block universe idea in some form, as it fits the models of relativity and the fabric of the universe. |

Key Quotes From Henri Bergson’s Works
On the Limits of Science
“Science, as we understand it today, has only one goal: to explain, to demonstrate, to measure; but life is not a thing to be demonstrated or explained.”
— Henri Bergson, Creative Evolution
Explanation: Bergson points out that while science is excellent at analyzing and categorizing the world, it falls short of capturing the full, living experience of life itself. Life is not merely something to be measured or explained through scientific methods. It has to be “lived”.
On the Nature of Time
“The present is the only reality; the past is a memory, the future is a dream.”— Henri Bergson, Time and Free Will
Explanation: For Bergson, time is not something that exists as a rigid, quantifiable entity. The present moment is where true reality lies, while the past and future are mere concepts, shaped by our memories and expectations.
On the Experience of Time
“Time is the one thing we cannot measure with any certainty; it is only in the consciousness of our own lives that we feel it, and the more profound the experience, the more fluid and endless it becomes.”
— Henri Bergson, Matter and Memory
Explanation: Time, according to Bergson, cannot be truly understood through measurement. It is felt in the depth of our lived experience. The more we live and grow, the more fluid and boundless time becomes, beyond the static tick of a clock.
On Change and Consciousness
“To exist is to change, to change is to mature, to mature is to go on creating oneself endlessly.”
— Henri Bergson, The Creative Evolution
Explanation: Change is at the core of existence. It is through change that we grow, evolve, and continuously shape ourselves. Life, for Bergson, is an ongoing process of creation and transformation.
On the Limits of Determinism
“The deterministic view of the universe does not account for the life of the mind and the freedom we experience within our own consciousness.”
— Henri Bergson, Creative Evolution
Explanation: Bergson challenges the deterministic view that everything in the universe is preordained and can be explained mechanically.
He believes that human consciousness and the freedom we experience cannot be reduced to mere cause and effect.
On the Pursuit of Truth Beyond Science
“Truth is not the property of science, but of philosophy, and philosophy is the art of looking beyond the visible to the deeper meaning.”
— Henri Bergson, The Two Sources of Morality and Religion
Explanation: According to Bergson, while science seeks visible truths, philosophy goes deeper. Philosophy seeks to explore what cannot be seen or measured, offering a fuller understanding of existence that science alone cannot provide.
On the Mystery of Life
“Life is a creative force, ever-changing, ever-flowing; to experience it fully, we must go beyond the measurement of it and dive into its flowing essence.”
— Henri Bergson
Explanation: Life, for Bergson, is a dynamic and creative force. To truly experience it, we must move beyond measuring. Instead, we have to embrace its ever-changing and flowing nature.
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