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Pragmatism, Pluralism, and the Role of Inquiry in Comparative Philosophy

Pragmatism, Pluralism, and the Role of Inquiry in Comparative Philosophy Robert W. Smid / Curry College he purpose of this paper is to look into the role of inquiry in pragmatism and its implications for comparative philosophy. The self-referential character of the previous statement--that I am "looking into" inquiry-- is meant to make a basic point: that inquiry is not something particular to the pragmatist tradition, but is entailed in any form of philosophical consideration (including such considerations of pragmatism as the following). More precisely, I will explore how the peculiar approach to inquiry undertaken within that tradition lends it some noteworthy advantages in comparative philosophy. Thus, if James was right in describing pragmatism as just "a new name for some old ways of thinking,"1 this paper seeks to identify--at least in part--what merits the new name and how it might contribute to some new ways of thinking. The impetus for this paper stems from questions pertaining to the surprisingly strong showing of pragmatism in comparative philosophy over the last hundred years.2 Why is it, for example, that the classical pragmatists were among the first to take comparative inquiry seriously (e.g., Emerson, James, and Dewey)? Similarly, why have pragmatists been so disproportionately represented in that subfield, especially when http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png American Journal of Theology & Philosophy University of Illinois Press

Pragmatism, Pluralism, and the Role of Inquiry in Comparative Philosophy

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University of Illinois Press
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Copyright © University of Illinois Press
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2156-4795
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Abstract

Robert W. Smid / Curry College he purpose of this paper is to look into the role of inquiry in pragmatism and its implications for comparative philosophy. The self-referential character of the previous statement--that I am "looking into" inquiry-- is meant to make a basic point: that inquiry is not something particular to the pragmatist tradition, but is entailed in any form of philosophical consideration (including such considerations of pragmatism as the following). More precisely, I will explore how the peculiar approach to inquiry undertaken within that tradition lends it some noteworthy advantages in comparative philosophy. Thus, if James was right in describing pragmatism as just "a new name for some old ways of thinking,"1 this paper seeks to identify--at least in part--what merits the new name and how it might contribute to some new ways of thinking. The impetus for this paper stems from questions pertaining to the surprisingly strong showing of pragmatism in comparative philosophy over the last hundred years.2 Why is it, for example, that the classical pragmatists were among the first to take comparative inquiry seriously (e.g., Emerson, James, and Dewey)? Similarly, why have pragmatists been so disproportionately represented in that subfield, especially when

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American Journal of Theology & Philosophy – University of Illinois Press

Published: May 9, 2012

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