Evolution and the Founders of Pragmatism

by Philip P. Wiener

This book is a volume in the Penn Press Anniversary Collection. To mark its 125th anniversary in 2015, the University of Pennsylvania Press rereleased more than 1,100 titles from Penn Press's distinguished backlist from 1899-1999 that had fallen out of print. Spanning an entire century, the Anniversary Collection offers peer-reviewed scholarship in a wide range of subject areas.

Genres: Philosophy

304 pages, Paperback

First published December 12, 1972

Reviews

[Ed · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book has been on my shelf for a long time. I avoided it because of the dull format -- a chapter on each of several philosophers. It was probably a good idea to wait to read it. The chapters on Peirce and James are very helpful. By focusing on their relationship to evolutionary theories, rather than semiotics or radical empiricism, Weiner is able to clarify the differences between them and give me a better idea of the overall shape of their thinking. He also gave me a better idea of the philosophical, as opposed to theological, significance of Darwin in the late nineteenth century.

[Kevin Fulton · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you want an overview of the key players of pragmatism (Chauncey Wright, Charles Pierce, William James, John Fiske, John Green, and Oliver Holmes) then this book would be a good place to start.

This book does an excellent job explaining how the theory of evolution was an integral driving force in the development of pragmatism. However, neither the author or the philosophers ever think to ask if evolution can provide justification for a moral position or even provide justification for a standard of thinking. This is a bit surprising because the philosophers were brilliant thinkers.

Since evolution cannot provide any sort of standard, there is a significant weakness in pragmatism, at least as practiced by its founders.