... | |Pragmatism | | | | | |By Rev. David F. Austin | |3/6/2012 | |Pragmatism - an American movement in philosophy founded by C. S. Peirce and William James and marked by the doctrines that the meaning of | |conceptions is to be sought in their practical bearings, that the function of thought is to guide action, and that truth is preeminently to be| |tested by the practical consequences of belief. | 1 Pragmatism is a philosophical tradition centered on the linking of practice and theory. It describes a process where theory is extracted from practice, and applied back to practice to form what is called intelligent practice. Important positions characteristic of pragmatism include instrumentalism...
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...Moving onwards from the instrumentalist components of Dewey’s pragmatism, Shannon Sullivan uses this excerpt to support her case for the positive potential of pragmatic though within our current society. Previously established through Dewey’s theory on an organism’s life existing within and “through” skin, Sullivan harnesses the acceptance of the “transaction” allowing all processes to occur as a means positive transformation. Through the boundaries of sex and race, Sullivan reveals the human individual as a body no longer bounded by absolute substance. Instead, we can find direction and freedom within the dynamic relationship of body and environment, and address the impact of the insurmountable activities of life “on people’s lived situations and experiences” (Sullivan 3). Acknowledgment of our transactional bodies formation by mutual constitution and categorization of the world comes with the examination of the “hidden assumptions and blind spots” that accompany a particular perspective, and ultimately, the potential of changed habit for achieving what Dewey previously defines as a Great community (Sullivan 4). By encouraging the collaboration and advantages of a transactional perspective of our own body, Sullivan wishes to free the boundaries of fixed habit and improve bodily existence through a blend of 20th Century pragmatism. Sullivan’s concern remains within the social, ethical, and epistemological implications of transactional bodies, encouraging the explanation...
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...on Narcissism, Pragmatism, Unbridled Restlessness and the Non-Contemplative Personality In this chapter, Rolheiser presents to us three main factors that militates against contemplation, and fosters a non-contemplative personality by pointing out how our own self-interests blocks us from having a purity of heart needed to see God. These factors are namely Narcissism, Pragmatism and Unbridled Restlessness. Narcissism is defined in Freudian psychology as “excessive self-preoccupation. This entails a propensity for individualism and our corresponding inability to be healthily aware of and concerned about the reality beyond our private lives. In other words, Narcissism is the state of being obsessed with one’s self to the point that everything beyond one’s self is deemed irrelevant. Narcissistic people lack a sense of the communal and lack a sense of reality beyond themselves because for them, the only real thing is themselves, they desire to excel above others, can’t act beyond self-interests and are becoming excessively private. Pragmatism comes from the word pragma, which means “business”, efficiency, sensibleness and practicality. In its philosophy, what it means is what is true is what works, wherein the truth should correspond to concrete utilities, practical consequences and can benefit the world. Basically, the worth of everything lies in achievements. This, in some aspects is good, as it benefits everyone. However, there are some aspects of pragmatism that should be addressed...
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...The United States distinctive contribution to philosophy is known as pragmatism or, sometimes, American pragmatism. Pragmatism is the philosophy where practical consequences and real effects are vital components of meaning and truth. Pragmatists rejected the idea that there is such a thing as fixed, absolute truth. Instead, they held that truth is relative to a time and place and purpose and is thus ever changing in light of new data. philosophical analysis resolves complex propositions or concepts into simpler ones. An elementary example is the proposition square circles are nonexistent things might be resolved by analysis into the simpler proposition no squares are circular. Pragmatism is an American theoretical movement that was developed by Charles Sanders Peirce in the 1870s. Pragmatism argues that the truth and meaning of an idea is directly related to its practical outcome. Analytic philosophy was developed by philosophers Bertrand Russell and G.E. Moore in the early 1900s and received widespread attention in English-speaking countries during the 20th century. Analytic philosophy emphasizes the use of logical argument, language analysis and scientific methods in approaching ideas. Pragmatism and analytic philosophy are uniquely American movements in that they drastically differ from the philosophy found in Europe during the same period. Pragmatism and analytic philosophy are centered on a scientific approach to argument and analysis, whereas 19th and 20th century European...
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...Optional Paper: Them four: The student-teacher constructivism avoids two extremes: 1) subjective opinion not based on objective knowledge or the exclusion of humans' innate desire for knowledge and for meaning and moral right action. objective knowledge consisting of memorization of facts or blindly submitting to an ideology such as the patriarchal, philosophic perspective of liberal education or scientific positivism Many of the moral guidelines set out by society are based on the innate knowledge of right from wrong. Religions have established laws or commands, from their particular gods, that reflect this knowledge. They are, in a way, correct in interpreting it thus; for universal codes are the laws of nature, and subsequently, part of the universal order. For living things, other than man, there is no right and wrong, no good and evil; they simply follow the laws that nature has set out. From a human perspective, we can say that other creatures do only what is right, because no alternative exists for them. Humans have the capacity to conceive of ways that are contrary to the laws of nature, due to our intelligence, and ability to reason in the abstract; other life cannot: but perhaps that is an example of wisdom. The philosophical/historical work of Michel Foucault has been studied in humanities courses as diverse as gender studies and rhetoric. Despite this fact, his insights have been difficult to appropriate in the realm of education. In part, this is because...
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...philosophies, which have been accepted by people all over the world and endured the test of times. The principle regarding ‘Pragmatism Philosophy’, specifically, which accurately details a notion that rejects thoughts, which are not complete reality. For instance, “There is [no] such thing as a fixed, absolute truth” (Moore & Bruder, 2011, p. 206). This truth being relative to time, place, purpose, and is always modifying in light of new statistics, that being facts. As a philosopher, many have recognized you as being America’s notable philosopher of your time. In addition I had read that you were not satisfied to bring forth theories; but instead came forward to accentuate your own concepts of liberalism, and, with the resolution of a champion, you were prepared to provide your title and status to foundations that were scowled upon by demure society. I believe there is no other way things should be seen in life, if not reality. For you to support those that look scowl upon these societies only gives me more respect for you, not only as a philosopher, but a human being. To be pragmatic, in philosophy or in ordinary life, is, above all, being realistic, which you no doubt express everyday within your own life. In philosophy they say you are called Instrumentalism, you also went on and tried to associate both Perice’s and James’ philosophies of Pragmatism, both were about rational notions as well as moral evaluation. Perice’s view however included an understanding many could...
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...Pragmatism is a philosophical tradition that began in the United States around 1870.[1] Pragmatism is a rejection of the idea that the function of thought is to describe, represent, or mirror reality[citation needed]. Instead, pragmatists consider thought to be a product of the interaction between organism and environment. Thus, the function of thought is as an instrument or tool for prediction, action, and problem solving. Pragmatists contend that most philosophical topics—such as the nature of knowledge, language, concepts, meaning, belief, and science—are all best viewed in terms of their practical uses and successes. A few of the various but interrelated positions often characteristic of philosophers working from a pragmatist approach include: Epistemology (justification): a coherentist theory of justification that rejects the claim that all knowledge and justified belief rest ultimately on a foundation of noninferential knowledge or justified belief. Coherentists hold that justification is solely a function of some relationship between beliefs, none of which are privileged beliefs in the way maintained by foundationalist theories of justification. Epistemology (truth): a deflationary or pragmatist theory of truth; the former is the epistemological claim that assertions that predicate truth of a statement do not attribute a property called truth to such a statement while the latter is the epistemological claim that assertions that predicate truth of a statement attribute...
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...teaching English for Academic Purposes (EAP). In particular, it examines Critical Pedagogy, Pragmatic Pedagogy and Critical-Pragmatic Pedagogy in the context of teaching academic writing to university students. This is an important issue as there is widespread debate as to what constitutes effective EAP instruction within the academic sphere. The conflicting perspectives are that a critical approach to pedagogy, with its challenge of current ‘implicit and explicit standards’ (Cherryholmes: 1988) is most effective. Other academics argue the case of a vulgar pragmatic approach that relies on structure and ‘the notions of theory and practice’ (Williams: 1983). There is also support for a hybrid approach to EAP learning, known as critical pragmatism. This method encourages the characteristic critical pedagogical challenge of the status quo, while still requiring ideas to be translated and conveyed by means of structured ‘discourse practices’ (Cherryholmes: 1988). Finally, upon examining the aforementioned approaches to EAP by review of scholarly literature, I intend to argue affirmatively that vulgar-pragmatic based pedagogy is the best and most effective method of teaching EAP to university students. The concept of critical pedagogical learning relies on the principle that ‘the classroom needs to be continually interrogated for the ideologies it fosters and reproduces’ (McLaren: 2011). This means that ‘criticalists’ (those who support a critical approach) prefer a system of education...
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...Richard Rorty The nature of knowledge has been of great concern to many prominent thinkers and philosophers who may represent different historical periods or schools of thought. Many of them examine the ways in which people can determine whether a certain premise is valid or not. This paper is aimed at discussing Richard Rorty’s approach to the interpretation of such a concept as truth. One should keep in mind that Rorty is a representative of pragmatism; according to this theory, truth can be described as a “changing, subjective, and relative” phenomenon (414). In particular, it is necessary to evaluate his claim that “we commend a statement as true when it passes the tests that our community uses to distinguish what is true from what is false” (416). In other words, this argument implies that a person can accept anything as truth, provided that it is compatible with the standards of validity that are adopted by a group. Overall, this argument should not be overlooked because it highlights the unreliability of human knowledge; nevertheless, its relativism can be used to justify absurd or even atrocious ideas that can eventually prove to be disastrous. These are the main issues that should be discussed more closely. Overall, Richard Rorty believes that individuals accept something as truth if it passes the “procedures of justification” established in a certain community (416). In this context, the term justification procedures can be described as the tools or tests which...
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...the time of the Civil War and involved philosophers, scientists, mathematicians, and idealists. It describes the life of four intellectuals who share their views on how they feel about things and how they perceive the world. These individuals somehow link back to Harvard and have something in common. They all are thinkers. These fours thinkers are Charles Pierce, William James, Oliver Holmes Jr., and John Dewey. Each one of these individuals had their own exploration of ideas and shared them to one another to either agree or disagree on how to define modern American Life. They formed a club called, “The Metaphysical Club.” “The Metaphysical Club” based a lot of their discoveries and beliefs and built them into a category called pragmatism. Pragmatism is basically a way of thinking or doing things based on the situation instead of using ideas and theories as the way of thinking or doing things. During this time period, Darwin’s “Origin of Species” and the Civil war lead to this way of thinking and influenced these individuals way of thinking. “The Metaphysical Club” had many conversations with different philosophers and read many...
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...PERSPECTIVES BY Kurt StuKe The Unending Search Transformation in quality as a ‘thing in the making’ RECENTLY, STEPHEN K. Hacker wrote that “many of our organizations remain mired in their current states, frozen in old mindsets.” To free our organizations and 1 What follows is a contrast of the current grammar and its tacit assumptions concerning knowing, being and meaning to a different grammar born in the experiential-based philosophy of William James. The difference between grammars and the importance of the difference in the reconstruction of transformation and quality is explored. knower and thing known is usually referred to as the subject or object split within philosophy. The self or knower within such a vision is always distinct and apart from the world. The essential rationality and immutability of knowing and being within the traditional mindset lends itself to quantitative methods and statistical tools. You can progress safely through the define, measure, analyze, improve and control cycle—or choose not to—because the universe as defined through the traditional grammar is inherently knowable and predictable. You can differentiate between common cause and special-cause variation, and, by extension, processes that are in control and out of control because of the assumed stability within knowing, being and meaning. Language and meaning within these horizons also are based in antecedent truths. If you have the correct name of a thing, you have insight into...
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...Cultural Differences Between the USA and Japan Deundrey R. Dunn Human Resources Management 367 Organizational Culture UMUC I compared the United States of America to Japan and was surprised to find out that our two cultures are surprisingly different in all six dimensions on the Hofsted’s 6-D model. The results of the comparison are as follows; The Power Distance Category In the Power Distance Category the USA scored 40 and Japan scored 54. Within American organizations, hierarchy is established for convenience, generally U.S. Companies decision making is quick. Superiors give leeway to subordinates so that they can decide and make decisions quickly. Unfortunately, there are some errors that can come because of that (Btrax, 2010). In this area Japan have a higher belief that everyone in society is not equal and depend on people in higher positions to handle their problems and to make important decisions compared to the USA for example; there are numerous influences that may make the Japanese less likely to express their opinion and more likely to be shy. Firstly, the Japanese language is hierarchical. As a result of using it, individual Japanese become relatively more conscious of their inferior social status as they are growing up surrounded by people superior in status (because they are older). The Japanese culture makes them more aware of their inferior social status, further more they may be less likely to express their opinion for the same reason an American...
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...CD 1 LE LIVRE DE LA GENESE 1. Les sept jours de la création (Genèse 1,1 – 2,4) 1. Au commencement Dieu créa le ciel et la terre. 2. La terre étoit informe et toute nue, les ténèbres couvroient la face de l'abîme et l'Esprit de Dieu étoit porté sur les eaux. 3. Or Dieu dit: Que la lumière soit faite. Et la lumière fut faite. 4. Dieu vit que la lumière étoit bonne, et il sépara la lumière d'avec les ténèbres. 5. Il donna à la lumière le nom de Jour, et aux ténèbres le nom de Nuit: et du soir et du matin se fit le premier jour. 6. Dieu dit aussi: Que le firmament soit fait au milieu des eaux, et qu'il sépare les eaux d'avec les eaux. 7. Et Dieu fit le firmament; et sépara les eaux qui étoient sous le firmament de celles qui étaient au-dessus du firmament. Et cela se fit ainsi. 8. Et Dieu donna au firmament le nom de Ciel: et du soir et du matin se fit le second jour. 9. Dieu dit encore : Que les eaux qui sont sous le ciel se rassemblent en un seul lieu, et que l'élément aride paroisse. Et cela se fît ainsi. 10. Dieu donna à l'élément aride le nom de Terre, et il appela Mers toutes ces eaux rassemblées. Et il vit que cela étoit bon. 11. Dieu dit encore : Que la terre produise de l'herbe verte qui porte de la graine, et des arbres fruitiers qui portent du fruit chacun selon son espèce, et qui renferment leur semence en eux-mêmes pour se reproduire sur la terre. Et cela se fit ainsi. 12. La terre produisit donc de l’herbe verte qui portoit de la graine selon son espèce...
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...To what extent have Conservatives preferred pragmatism and empiricism to political principles? To fully understand and explore the question the meaning of empiricism and pragmatism must be identified. In relation to politics empiricism is the theory that all knowledge is based on experience. Stimulated by the rise of experimental science, it developed in the 17th and 18th centuries, expounded in particular by John Locke, George Berkeley, and David Hume. Political pragmatism links to the belief that politics should be guided by practical experience and observation rather than theory or ideology. It is clear both words have a very similar meaning and illustrate that the conservatives don’t operate on a strict ideological doctrine. Pre 21st century, the UK electorate was largely defined and separated by three main ideologies: Conservatism, Socialism and Liberalism. This gave the Conservative Party the ability to promote principles over pragmatism. However, as social developments occurred and ideological affiliations declined, political parties are no longer able to promote these narrow principles, as they are forced to adopt a wider spectrum of principles that apply to the mainstream electorate. The presence of 'right wing' and 'left wing' electorate has demised rapidly since pre 21st century politics. It is clear that the main parties adopt a more central position, the Conservatives being known as Centre Right. This demise in ideology in general has been mirrored by the Conservative...
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...I believe that the courts rule the nation because even though they don’t have many powers, they are the last ones who get a say on a matter. This is Judicial Review which gives the court the right to “strike down acts that violate the constitution” (Morone & Kersh 577). The Judicial system also has the shortest article in the constitution; therefore it has fewer constraints on its power. The Judicial Review was never in the constitution, but the court gained that power saying that it fit under its umbrella of powers. The court’s power enhances more by pragmatism than originalism. Morone and Kersh say that “The Court breaks relatively evenly along the partisan divide” (591). I believe it leans towards pragmatism because of its...
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