"What the true definition of Pragmatism may be, I find it very hard to say; but in my nature it is a sort of instinctive attraction for living facts."-- Peirce in his Harvard Lectures on Pragmatism, CP 5.64, 1903
"This bald summary of the thought-destroying forces of our time would not be complete without some reference to pragmatism; for though I have here used and should everywhere defend the pragmatist method as a preliminary guide to truth, there is an extreme application of it which involves the absence of all truth whatever."--G.K. Chesterton, "The Suicide of Thought" from Orthodoxy.
"Upon this first...rule of reason, that in order to learn you must desire to learn, and in so desiring not be satisfied with what you already incline to believe, there follows one corollary which itself deserves to be inscribed upon every wall of the city of philosophy: Do not block the way of inquiry."--Charles Sanders Peirce, 1896
Alice C. Linsley
Charles Sanders Peirce (pronounced "purse") is regarded as the pioneer of a uniquely American approach to knowledge called "Pragmatism." He was a scientist who believed that philosophy should be more scientific, that is, for a statement to be true there should be an experiment or observation that confirms its truth. Peirce disliked the abstraction he found in many philosophical conversations. Much of the conversation he thought was nonsense because people failed to make logical distinctions, or failed to test their assumptions. Most arguments, false ideas, and logical fallacies can be avoided by following Peirce's three rules: (1) desire to learn); (2) don't be satisfied with what you already believe; and (3) do not block the way of inquiry.
Peirce is associated with
William James,
Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., and
John Dewey. Peirce received his M.A. from Harvard in 1862, and was a professor at Johns Hopkins, and occasional lecturer at Harvard.
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Charles Sander Peirce
(1839-1914) |
Peirce defined Pragmatism as a philosophical approach designed to bring clarity through the application of logic. He wrote, "The study of philosophy consists, therefore, in reflection, and pragmatism is that method of reflection which is guided by constantly holding in view its purpose and the purpose of the ideas it analyzes, whether these ends be of the nature and uses of action or of thought. It will be seen that pragmatism is not a
Weltanschauung but is a method of reflection having for its purpose to render ideas clear." (From Peirce's Personal Interleaved Copy of the 'Century Dictionary', CP 5.13 n. 1, c. 1902)
In
The Metaphysical Club: A Story of Ideas in America, cultural historian Louis Menand explains how these men influenced each other during their months together in Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1872, and how their lives were influenced by the American Civil War and by Darwin's theory of natural selection set forth, among other theories, in his "Origin of Species" in 1859. Darwin's ideas were much discussed among the members of the Metaphysical Club.
The name of the club is ironic since the members had no interest in metaphysics. Metaphysics is the philosophical exploration of entities beyond matter: Goodness, Truth, Eternity, the Soul, God, etc.
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| William James |
Among the Club's members were the philosopher-psychologist William James (1842-1910). James wrote
The Varieties of Religious Experience: A Study in Human Nature. The book comprises James' edited Gifford Lectures on
natural theology, which were delivered at the University of Edinburgh in 1901 and 1902.These lectures concerned the nature of religion and the neglect of science in the academic study of religion.
Another member was the future Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr.who said, "The mind, once expanded to the dimensions of larger ideas, never returns to its original size." He also said, "Truth is tough. It will not break, like a bubble, at a touch; nay, you may kick it about all day like a football, and it will be round and full at evening."
Charles Sanders Peirce is the one who gave the club its rather
ironic name because pragmatism is not interested in Metaphysics. Peirce
wrote, "...pragmatism is, in itself, no doctrine of metaphysics, no attempt to
determine any truth of things. It is merely a method of ascertaining the
meanings of hard words and of abstract concepts. All pragmatists of whatsoever
stripe will cordially assent to that statement."
The pragmatists asked
why do we have minds? Have humans survived and evolved because organisms with
minds would be naturally selected over organisms without minds? Menand maintains
that "Pragmatism is Darwin's theory of natural selection applied to philosophy."
Peirce, William James and Oliver Wendell Holmes held conversations about the Civil
War, logic, empiricism, and Darwin's
ideas. Oliver Wendell Holmes, who later became a Supreme Court Justice, said,
"The mind, once expanded to the dimensions of larger ideas, never returns
to its original size.”
William James (1842-1910) wrote The Varieties of Religious
Experience: A Study in Human Nature. The book comprises James' edited Gifford
Lectures on natural theology, which were delivered at the University of Edinburgh
in 1901 and 1902. These lectures concerned the nature of religion and the
neglect of science in the academic study of religion. James described religious
experience in psychological terms, and believed that religions serve as social
value. He even granted the possibility of supernatural experience, though he
held that this is beyond the bounds of Pragmatism. Dewey rejected the idea that
religious experience reflects a unique supernatural category of knowledge. He
agreed that religion might serve a social benefit, but never as a vehicle for
verifying facts. He believed that God and religion could be explained entirely
in natural or materialist terms.
Pragmatism was not a recognized philosophical movement until 1898 when William James first used the term in a lecture. This was the beginning of a partnership between William James and John Dewey (1859-1952). Dewey was a prolific writer with an early commitment to
British neo-Hegelianism. His greatest influence was on American education in the 20th century.
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| John Dewey |
Dewey founded the Chicago School of Pragmatism at the University of Chicago (1894-1904). The original group included
George H. Mead, James H. Tufts, James R. Angell, Edward Scribner Ames (Ph.D. Chicago 1895), and Addison W. Moore (Ph.D. Chicago 1898). There are half a dozen women in the group photo shown below. Dewey is at the center, just below the light fixture.
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| Chicago Philosophy Club,
1896 |
The primary influences on Dewey’s thought were Hegel and Darwin. He was both a materialist and an atheist, as evidenced from his first published article (1882) titled “The Metaphysical Assumptions of Materialism.” He believed that Man stands alone in his efforts to create the world of his dreams. Humans have finally reached the stage of evolution that makes them able to realize an ideal society.
Dewey’s pragmatism profoundly shaped American public
education. He applied the theory of natural selection to
education, insisting that some were more deserving of a higher level of
education than others. Likewise, these more evolved thinkers should be the only
ones permitted to teach at the higher levels.
Dewey was an atheist who believed that the idea of God is the product of the human imagination and could be used to indoctrinate. In his view, God "denotes the unity of all ideal ends arousing us to desire and
actions."
As a neo-pragmatist, Dewey regarded religion as a deterrent to progress and science as the only legitimate basis for social engineering. His is writings have led to
Scientism, the belief that science alone has authority to verify truth.
Dewey’s advocacy of Hegelian materialism and Darwinian
evolution made him more of an ideologue than an objective voice for learning. His
lack of objectivity represents a betrayal of Peirce's third rule of pragmatism. In 1896, Pierce wrote, "Upon this
first...rule of reason, that in order to learn you must desire to learn, and in
so desiring not be satisfied with what you already incline to believe, there
follows one corollary which itself deserves to be inscribed upon every wall of
the city of philosophy: Do not block the way of inquiry."
According to the this corollary, Dewey's atheistic-Darwinian assumptions need to be
questioned. Yet Pragmatism's
strangle hold on American education makes it almost impossible to question
Dewey's assumptions. This is why there is considerable academic resistance, even hostility, to approaches that are not based on Dewey's assumptions.
Dewey was determined that American education should be based
on his materialist evolutionary worldview. His approach had the effect of
enshrining Darwin
in the public schools and blocking metaphysical inquiry. Without metaphysics
there is no means of integrating the subjects taught in schools. Students learn
content in various subjects. However, there is no means of integrating learning
so much that is learned is lost.
Public schools will continue to fail because they do not need to change. They receive our tax dollars regardless of their lack of success. They are supported by two powerful unions with big lobbies in Washington, and the underlying philosophy is the pragmatism of John Dewey, a Marxist and an atheist. Further, Dewey's pragmatism continues to be the dominant educational philosophy in the teacher training institutions. The effect is to eliminate all metaphysical conversation and thereby limit what students and teachers may discuss.
The English writer, Dorothy L. Sayers, noted in her 1947
speech “
The Lost Tools of
Learning” that the dismissal of metaphysics from modern education has
resulted in students learning more, but knowing less than students under
Scholasticism when metaphysics was still part of education. She showed that teaching
less in more subjects prolongs intellectual childhood because students are not
given the tools for mature (lifelong) learning. Sayers’ speech has had a great
influence on the ever expanding classical education movement in
America.
An honest assessment of American public education suggests
that grades motive more than the desire to learn. Politics plays a greater role
in educational policy than sound educational research. At the university level,
peer review has the effect of diminishing the influence of paradigm-shifters.
More honorary degrees are given to celebrities and politicians than to scholars
who make authentic contributions to human knowledge. Every American university
has been influenced by Pragmatism. The list of scholars and institutions
appears
here, but this is
by no means a comprehensive list.
A critic of Dewey’s “instrumental pragmatism” was the
English writer G.K. Chesterton who wrote about the “suicide of thought” in
modernism. He appreciated logical thought and empirical evidence, but not the
idolatry of scientism. He wrote, “This bald summary of the thought-destroying
forces of our time would not be complete without some reference to pragmatism;
for though I have here used and should everywhere defend the pragmatist method
as a preliminary guide to truth, there is an extreme application of it which involves
the absence of all truth whatever.”
Why American schools are
failing
A
recent article at Enthography.com calls attention to the differences between German and American universities. Germans who have studied in the United States consider American universities to be academically equivalent to German high schools. The writer of the article, Tony Waters (University of California, Chico), wonders if this is due to "dumbing down" the American curriculum. It seems more likely that Pragmatism's betrayal of Peirce's three rules of epistemology is the cause of the failure of American education. As Dorothy Sayers recognized in her 1947 lecture on "
The Lost Tools of Learning" the loss of metaphysics makes it nearly impossible for students to integrate learning. They are left with blocks of information in different subjects which seem not to be related. A student may know a good amount of information in a given area but remain uneducated.
Sayers
identified very early many of the problems that have arisen in education. While
she is correct that none can “turn back the wheel” to the late Middle Ages when
metaphysical exploration was still part of education, she nevertheless urges
that we consider ways to restore the lost tools of learning. Sayers draws on her
extensive knowledge of the medieval period to help us understand which tools are
essential if students are to be life-long learners. She identifies the following
concerns:
Irresponsible
prolongation of intellectual childhood to justify teaching less in more
subjects
Confusion of fact and opinion, or the proven and the plausible,
in the media.
Sophistry in public debate, rather than logical rhetoric
and concern for truth.
Committees addressing mostly irrelevant matters
expected to form public policy.
Failure to define terms and intentional
abuse of language, making words mean whatever one wants them to mean.
A
society of adults who do not know how to discern legitimate expertise from
popular pulp and who do not know how to research.
The tendency to become
so specialized that people cannot make connections between the
disciplines.
Scientists who fail to adhere to the basic principles of Aristotelian logic, thus presenting speculation as facts. Such is the case with
Scientism.
Sayers’critique
of the society in which she lived (mid-20th century England) is relevant today.
These problems are more pronounced in our time.
Related reading:
Menand brings pragmatists of the Metaphysical Club to life;
Bibliography of Charles Sanders Peirce's Writings;
Women and Shrine Wisdom;
Response to Sayers' Lost Tools of Learning;
Why I'm a Public School Teacher but a Private School Parent
