Democratic Hope: Pragmatism and the Politics of Truth

Robert B. Westbrook

Published by Cornell University Press 2015

Democratic Hope

Pragmatism and the Politics of Truth

Robert B. Westbrook

https://doi.org/10.7591/9781501702068

Overview
Contents

About this book

Pragmatism, as Richard Rorty has said, "names the chief glory of our country's intellectual tradition." In Democratic Hope, Robert B. Westbrook examines the varieties of classical pragmatist thought in the work of John Dewey, William James, and Charles Peirce.

Author / Editor information

Robert B. Westbrook is Professor of History at the University of Rochester. He is the author of John Dewey and American Democracy, also from Cornell, winner of the Merle Curti Award. He is also the author of Why We Fought: Forging American Obligations in World War II and the coeditor of In Face of the Facts: Moral Inquiry in American Scholarship.

Reviews

Michael Walzer, Institute for Advanced Study:

Robert B. Westbrook is a fine historian of 'old' pragmatism and its politics: his knowledge and skill are evident in the first half of this book. In the second half, which is even better, he proves himself to be a brilliant critic of contemporary pragmatic politics and, finally, a practitioner.

James T. Kloppenberg, Harvard University:

Democratic Hope is an impassioned plea for a particular kind of democratic politics from one of John Dewey's most fervent and persuasive champions. Robert B. Westbrook calls for a participatory democratic culture broader than that embraced either by Jeffersonians at the dawn of the republic or by populists a century ago. Never has Dewey's vision of the ethics of democracy mattered more than it does today, and no one illuminates American democratic ideals better than Westbrook does in this book.

This book is the rare work of intellectual history that is simultaneously a powerful contribution to political criticism.

Topics

Frontmatter Publicly Available Download PDF	i
Contents Publicly Available Download PDF	vii
Preface Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	ix
Introduction Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	1
PART ONE. Pragmatism Old
1. Peircean Politics Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	19
2. Our Kinsman, William James Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	52
3. Pullman and the Professor Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	74
4. On the Private Parts of a Public Philosopher Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	99
5. Marrying Marxism Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	114
PART TWO. Pragmatism New
6. A Dream Country Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	137
7. Democratic Logic Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	175
8. Democratic Evasions Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	201
9. Educating Citizens Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	218
Index Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	241

(Deutsch)

Language: English
Publisher: Cornell University Press
Audience: General/trade;
Pages
- Main content: 256
Keywords: Philosophy; U.S. History

eBook

Published: July 22, 2015
ISBN: 9781501702068