Pragmatic is a philosophy that takes social, cultural and situational factors into consideration when understanding the meaning of language. This is different from semantics which focuses on the literal meaning of words and sentences. Pragmatics is the ‘art’ of language that is used in conversation to disambiguate meaning in everyday situations.
One of the core ideas of pragmatism is that hypotheses are only truly clarified by tracing their implications for experience in specific circumstances. This leads to a fallibilist and anti-Cartesian approach to the nature of truth. This also produces a broad epistemological outlook that is distinct from both realism broadly conceived and more narrow alethic monisms (following Peirce).
It also leads to an outlook that can be applied to philosophical problems, for example, how to understand the nature of science and religion. It can also be applied to questions of ethics, especially in medicine and law. It has influenced scholars in a range of fields including the history of philosophy, logic, epistemology and aesthetics.
Unlike other forms of philosophy, pragmatism is not dogmatic about its views and is open to new ideas and perspectives. It does not subscribe to any particular metaphysics, although some pragmatists are critical of traditional metaphysics and some have argued for a non-representationalist view of metaphysics. It is also a philosophy that rejects dichotomies such as fact/value, mind/body and analytic/synthetic.
Its origins lie in the scientific revolution that was taking place around evolutionary theory, and first generation pragmatists were keen observers and participants of this. This was the inspiration for many of its key themes, particularly the nature of inquiry, the significance of context and the role of experience.
While some pragmatists have interpreted these themes in different ways, the core of pragmatism is its commitment to an emancipatory philosophy that values practical outcomes and a belief in the value of learning. It is, therefore, a philosophy of action.
This pragmatism can be seen in the way that we use the language we have, for example in the expression “as long as it works” which is an idiom for something that will be acceptable or satisfactory even though it may not be perfect. It can also be seen in the way that we solve problems, for example in a business setting where it is more important to get things up and running quickly than to achieve perfection or an ideal outcome.
Another application of pragmatism is in the field of medicine where it is a guiding principle for doctors who are concerned with the well-being and health of their patients. It also influences medical education which is increasingly being based on praxical learning rather than didactic learning. It is a philosophy with much to offer and an exciting time to be studying it.