A concise, reader-friendly overview of pragmatism, the most influential school of American philosophical thought.

Pragmatism, America’s homegrown philosophy, has been a major intellectual movement for over a century. Unlike its rivals, it reaches well beyond the confines of philosophy into concerns and disciplines as diverse as religion, politics, science, and culture. In this concise, engagingly written overview, John R. Shook describes pragmatism’s origins, concepts, and continuing global relevance and appeal. With attention to the movement’s original thinkers—Charles Sanders Peirce, William James, John Dewey, and George Herbert Mead—as well as its contemporary proponents, he explains how pragmatism thinks about what is real, what can be known, and what minds are doing. And because of pragmatism’s far-reaching impact, Shook shows how its views on reality, truth, knowledge, and cognition coordinate with its approaches to agency, sociality, human nature, and personhood.
Series Foreword vii
Preface ix
1 Pragmatism: An Old Name for Newly Confirmed Ideas 1
2 Principles of Pragmatism 21
3 Permanence and Impermanence 39
4 Context and Reality 65
5 Truth in Consequences 89
6 Being and Thinking 115
7 Pragmatism versus Epistemology 139
8 Transactional Knowledge 159
9 Ecological Mentality 181
10 Society, Self, and Mind 205
11 Culture and Person 227
Acknowledgments 243
Glossary 245
Notes 251
Further Reading 267
Index 273
John R. Shook teaches philosophy at Bowie State University in Maryland. He is coeditor of The Blackwell Companion to Pragmatism and Neuroscience, Neurophilosophy, and Pragmatism.

About

A concise, reader-friendly overview of pragmatism, the most influential school of American philosophical thought.

Pragmatism, America’s homegrown philosophy, has been a major intellectual movement for over a century. Unlike its rivals, it reaches well beyond the confines of philosophy into concerns and disciplines as diverse as religion, politics, science, and culture. In this concise, engagingly written overview, John R. Shook describes pragmatism’s origins, concepts, and continuing global relevance and appeal. With attention to the movement’s original thinkers—Charles Sanders Peirce, William James, John Dewey, and George Herbert Mead—as well as its contemporary proponents, he explains how pragmatism thinks about what is real, what can be known, and what minds are doing. And because of pragmatism’s far-reaching impact, Shook shows how its views on reality, truth, knowledge, and cognition coordinate with its approaches to agency, sociality, human nature, and personhood.

Table of Contents

Series Foreword vii
Preface ix
1 Pragmatism: An Old Name for Newly Confirmed Ideas 1
2 Principles of Pragmatism 21
3 Permanence and Impermanence 39
4 Context and Reality 65
5 Truth in Consequences 89
6 Being and Thinking 115
7 Pragmatism versus Epistemology 139
8 Transactional Knowledge 159
9 Ecological Mentality 181
10 Society, Self, and Mind 205
11 Culture and Person 227
Acknowledgments 243
Glossary 245
Notes 251
Further Reading 267
Index 273

Author

John R. Shook teaches philosophy at Bowie State University in Maryland. He is coeditor of The Blackwell Companion to Pragmatism and Neuroscience, Neurophilosophy, and Pragmatism.

Books for National Depression Education and Awareness Month

For National Depression Education and Awareness Month in October, we are sharing a collection of titles that educates and informs on depression, including personal stories from those who have experienced depression and topics that range from causes and symptoms of depression to how to develop coping mechanisms to battle depression.

Read more

Horror Titles for the Halloween Season

In celebration of the Halloween season, we are sharing horror books that are aligned with the themes of the holiday: the sometimes unknown and scary creatures and witches. From classic ghost stories and popular novels that are celebrated today, in literature courses and beyond, to contemporary stories about the monsters that hide in the dark, our list

Read more

Books for LGBTQIA+ History Month

For LGBTQIA+ History Month in October, we’re celebrating the shared history of individuals within the community and the importance of the activists who have fought for their rights and the rights of others. We acknowledge the varying and diverse experiences within the LGBTQIA+ community that have shaped history and have led the way for those

Read more