Pragmatic is an adjective that means “concerned with results and consequences.” It also refers to the unspoken rules of communication which guide our use of language in different social situations. It is how we know that children don’t speak the same way to a toddler as they would to an adult, or how we understand that in conversation it is customary to take turns speaking and to answer questions, etc. Children with pragmatic language disorders are often unable to grasp these rules and communicate in the same manner as their peers.
Pragmatism’s key ideas originated in discussions held by a group called the Metaphysical Club that met at Harvard in the 1870s (for a popular history of this group see Menand 1998). It was at this time that Peirce and James began to develop pragmatism as a name for their philosophical ideas.
The basic idea of pragmatism was that the world and knowledge were dynamically interacting in a constantly changing, largely unpredictable environment. This interaction resulted in new and ever-changing experiences, which the pragmatists believed were the source of real truth and real value. This view of reality and knowledge radically differed from both the idealistic doctrines of idealism and the realism of aristotelianism.
Consequently, pragmatists emphasized the practicality of knowledge. They viewed it as a tool for adapting to and controlling reality, and they were critical of moral and metaphysical doctrines that relegated change and action to the lowest level of importance.
In a world in which reality continually changes, it becomes more important to focus on what works rather than what should be. Pragmatic people are able to identify what is working, and they can find solutions more quickly and effectively than those who operate under an idealistic lens.
As a philosophy, pragmatism has spawned a wide variety of philosophical movements. The following is a list of some of the most significant pragmatists and their works:
Although he did not define pragmatism as such, William James’s 1907 book ‘Pragmatism: A New Name for Some Old Ways of Thinking’ contains an extensive introduction to pragmatism. In it, he describes the ‘tough-minded’ and ‘tender-minded’ ways of thinking as two sides of the same coin, and promises that pragmatism will reconcile them. James drew on Peirce and Dewey, but he also incorporated the ideas of philosophers such as Wilfrid Sellars, Quine, Richard Rorty, and John Rawls. In addition, he drew on his extensive reading in the history of philosophy and the social sciences. He also included a bibliography of primary texts which readers can consult to obtain the primary sources referred to in the article.