100 Years of Pragmatism

by Stuhr, John J.

• ISBN13: 9780253221421
• ISBN10: 0253221420
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2010-01-05
• Publisher: Indiana Univ Pr

Summary

William James claimed that hisPragmatism: A New Name for Some Old Ways of Thinkingwould prove triumphant and epoch-making. Today, after more than 100 years, how is pragmatism to be understood? What has been its cultural and philosophical impact? Is it a crucial resource for current problems and for life and thought in the future? John J. Stuhr and the distinguished contributors to this multidisciplinary volume address these questions, situating them in personal, philosophical, political, American, and global contexts. Engaging James in original ways, these 11 essays probe and extend the significance of pragmatism as they focus on four major, overlapping themes: pragmatism and American culture; pragmatism as a method of thinking and settling disagreements; pragmatism as theory of truth; and pragmatism as a mood, attitude, or temperament.

Author Biography

John J. Stuhr is Arts and Sciences Distinguished Professor of Philosophy and American Studies and Chair of the Department of Philosophy at Emory University. He is author of John Dewey; Genealogical Pragmatism: Philosophy, Experience, and Community; and Pragmatism, Postmodernism, and the Future of Philosophy. He is co-editor of The Journal of Speculative Philosophy.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	p. vii
List of Abbreviations	p. ix
Introduction: 100 Years of Pragmatism	p. 1
James's Pragmatism and American Culture, 1907-2007	p. 7
The Enemies of Pragmatism	p. 41
The Earth Must Resume Its Rights: A Jamesian Genealogy of Immaturity	p. 57
Pragmatism and Death: Method vs. Metaphor, Tragedy vs. the Will to Believe	p. 81
William James's Pragmatism: A Distinctly Mixed Bag	p. 96
The Deconstruction of Traditional Philosophy in William James's Pragmatism	p. 108
James on Truth and Solidarity: The Epistemology of Diversity and the Politics of Specificity	p. 124
Pragmatism, Nihilism, and Democracy: What Is Called Thinking at the End of Modernity?	p. 144
Active Tension	p. 173
Reflections on the Future of Pragmatism	p. 185
Looking toward Last Things: James's Pragmatism beyond Its First Century	p. 194
List of Contributors	p. 209
Index	p. 213
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