Among his other contributions to advancing our understanding of classical American pragmatism and, in particular, Charles S. Peirce, none is more worthy of our attention than Richard S. Robin's characteristically painstaking attempt to address the puzzle of Peirce's "Proof" of pragmaticism.1 In this as in so many other respects,2 he shows himself to be, in effect, the student of Max H. Fisch (see especially 1986, chapter 19).3 There are hermeneutical traditions as well as philosophical ones and often the former are (...) integral parts of the latter. This is certainly the case regarding pragmatism. A deeper or better understanding of the inaugural figures in this philosophical movement is taken, by the interpreters of.. (shrink)

Journal Name: Semiotica Issue: Ahead of print.

Darwin’s explanation for the natural phenomenon of evolution has been well established in the scientific community. That is a generally accepted historical fact, even if the situation has been very nuanced all along. If an alternative theory is to get established at all, it would have to take almost the same route that Darwin’s theory took. While the hair-splitting philosophical exegesis keeps moving the intellectual scholarship forward, some individuals from the “indefinite community” would have to decide to “charitably” put their (...) “faith” in an interpretation of the theory, put this abductive interpretation to a set of empirical tests, and “hope” that this also solves their pressing problems. Effectively, this.. (shrink)