The pragmatist tradition is an influential philosophical movement that emerged in the United States of America during the late nineteenth century. The unit explores some of the writings of three classical pragmatists – Charles S. Peirce, William James and John Dewey – along with contemporary pragmatists such as Richard Rorty, Hilary Putnam and Robert Brandom. The unit focuses on pragmatist ideas about truth and objectivity, including James's claim that the true is what it is satisfactory to believe and Peirce's claim that the truth is what we are destined to believe in the long run. As well as looking at James's view that it can be rational for our beliefs to be shaped by non-evidential... -- Course Website
Instructor: Dr Albert Atkin
Prerequisites: 39cp or admission to GDipArts
