Abstract

This book features fourteen original essays that critically engage the philosophy of Richard Rorty, with an emphasis on his ethics, epistemology, and politics. Inspired by James’ and Dewey’s pragmatism, Rorty urged us to rethink the role of science and truth with a liberal-democratic vision of politics. In doing so, he criticized philosophy as a sheer scholastic endeavor and put it back in touch with our most pressing cultural and human needs. The essays in this volume employ the conceptual tools and argumentative techniques of analytic philosophy and pragmatism and demonstrate the relevance of Rorty’s thought to the most urgent questions of our time. They touch on a number of topics, including but not limited to structural injustice, rule-following, Black feminist philosophy, legal pragmatism, moral progress, relativism, and skepticism. This book will be of interest to a wide range of scholars across disciplines who are engaging with the work of Richard Rorty. Papers By Barry Allen, Michael Bacon and Nat Rutherford, Rosa M. Calcaterra, Sharyn Clough, William M. Curtis, Susan Dieleman, Raff Donelson, Douglas Lind, Sabina Lovibond, Marianne Janack, Giancarlo Marchetti, Sarin Marchetti, Carol Rovane, Shannon Sullivan, and Chris Voparil