The New Pragmatism
by Alan Malachowski
(Acumen, 2010)
176 pages
Description
Some hundred years after its inception, pragmatism has reclaimed centre stage, not just within philosophy, but also within intellectual culture as a whole. This book sets out to explain what it is about pragmatism that makes it such a distinctively attractive prospect to so many thinkers, even in previously hostile traditions. Alan Malachowski sets out in a clear and accessible manner the original guiding thoughts behind the pragmatist approach to philosophy and examines how these thoughts have fared in the hands of those largely responsible for the present revival (Hilary Putnam and Richard Rorty). The pragmatism that emerges from this exploration of its “classic” and “new wave” forms is then assessed in terms of both its philosophical potential and its wider cultural contribution.
Contents
1. Introducing the New Pragmatism
2. Leaving Classic Pragmatism Behind
3. Rorty Against the Tradition
4. Putnam’s Contributions
5. Pragmatism without Reconciliation: Rorty and Putnam
6. Prospects
Conclusion
Alan Malachowski is Honorary Lecturer at the University of East Anglia. He is editor of "Reading Rorty" (Basil Blackwell, 1990) and the four volume set "Richard Rorty" (Sage Publications, 2002).
Read Elizabeth A. Sperry's review of Malachowski's book here.
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