The Pragmatic Turn

In this major new work, Richard J. Bernstein argues that many of
the most important themes in philosophy during the past one hundred
and fifty years are variations and developments of ideas that were
prominent in the classical American pragmatists: Charles S. Peirce,
William James, John Dewey and George H Mead. Pragmatism begins with
a thoroughgoing critique of the Cartesianism that dominated so much
of modern philosophy. The pragmatic thinkers reject a sharp
dichotomy between subject and object, mind-body dualism, the quest
for certainty and the spectator theory of knowledge. They seek to
bring about a sea change in philosophy that highlights the social
character of human experience and normative social practices, the
self-correcting nature of all inquiry, and the continuity of theory
and practice. And they-especially James, Dewey, and Mead-emphasize
the democratic ethical-political consequences of a pragmatic
orientation.

Many of the themes developed by the pragmatic thinkers were also
central to the work of major twentieth century philosophers like
Wittgenstein and Heidegger, but the so-called analytic-continental
split obscures this underlying continuity. Bernstein develops an
alternative reading of contemporary philosophy that brings out the
persistence and continuity of pragmatic themes. He critically
examines the work of leading contemporary philosophers who have
been deeply influenced by pragmatism, including Hilary Putnam,
Jürgen Habermas, Richard Rorty, and Robert Brandom, and he
explains why the discussion of pragmatism is so alive, varied and
widespread. This lucid, wide-ranging book by one of America's
leading philosophers will be compulsory reading for anyone who
wants to understand the state of philosophy today.