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William James, Pragmatism

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24 March 2009

Pragmatism : The Flexible Truth Of Consequences

In Pragmatism , William James espouses a 'radical empiricism , which weds the perceived opposites of his time : evolutionary science with religious faith . The pairing is an attempt at reconciliation between the two disparate groups of the time , encouraging them each to find the strengths in the other 's perspectives . In Present Philosophical Tendencies , Ralph Perry describes James 's radical empiricism as a philosophy where ideas are to be tested by direct knowledge

, and knowledge is limited to what can be presented ' But Perry qualifies his distinction , suggesting There is , however , a third consideration which is both an application of these , and the means of avoiding a difficulty . fatal to them . This is what James calls 'radical empiricism (Perry , 365 . James offers a middle ground , sometimes called pragmatism , where he argues religion is as important to truth as is empiricism . He reaches this conclusion by defining truth as that which works best , producing good consequences for the evolution of humankind - or just the fate of one person . In The Meaning Of Truth , he summarizes it as an idea . only [in] its workings (James , xvi . He gives us a truth which is shape-shifting , and yet ruled by the sluggish nature of progress - wherein humans are prone to change as little as possible , while negotiating with the fittest futures affordable . He says : THE TRUE IS THE NAME OF WHATEVER PROVES ITSELF TO BE GOOD IN THE...

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