Pragmatic is a philosophical movement that encompasses those who believe that ideologies and propositions are to be judged by their usefulness and truth, rather than by some metaphysical ideal. Developed during the latter quarter of the nineteenth century in the United States, pragmatism has since had a considerable influence on philosophy as well as on non-philosophers in fields such as law, education, psychology, sociology and literature. Pragmatism is often seen as a reaction to the traditional, idealistic and dogmatic nature of much of Western philosophy and thought.
While some pragmatists, such as Peirce and James, pressed the word “pragmatism” for publication in the 1870s, it achieved wide recognition following a series of lectures given by James in 1898. Both James and Peirce developed their respective versions of pragmatism and, though they sometimes disagreed over specifics, both held that the fundamental idea was to understand that knowledge is plastic and practical and that there are no fixed ‘truths’.
A central tenet of pragmatism is that knowledge is always subject to change. This was a consequence of the understanding that the world is always changing and that humans must adapt to these changes. This is why pragmatists such as Peirce and Dewey emphasized that knowledge is not a fixed, objective entity but an instrument for understanding and controlling the world. Consequently, pragmatists were critical of theories such as evolution and idealism which placed knowledge on some kind of metaphysical pedestal and of moral and metaphysical doctrines which place change and action on a low level of importance in the hierarchy of values.
The theory of pragmatics focuses on how meaning is constructed and how this is conveyed through language. It is this that separates it from semantics, which concerns the relation of signs to objects they may or may not denote. It is also this that makes pragmatism more of an everyday philosophy, since most people do not think in the abstract but in terms of the real world and how they can apply their knowledge to solve problems.
For example, a person who is pragmatic would understand that a gesture that is considered acceptable in the United States may be considered offensive in Greece because of cultural differences. This is why pragmatics is important – without it, communication between cultures could be very difficult, and this in turn can affect global commerce, international relations and the way we interact with each other.
In addition to its philosophical significance, pragmatics is a valuable tool for understanding human behavior and interactions. In this regard, it is a highly complex subject, and a lot of research still has to be done in order to understand its many facets and implications. However, it is safe to say that pragmatics is a subject that will be with us for a long time. This is especially the case because pragmatics provides a framework for considering how human behavior varies across cultures. This is what makes the study of pragmatics so fascinating.