How Pragmatism Would Be Appealing For A Wide Audience Essay

As a psychology major, it is important to know how to work with diverse populations, especially in today’s society. It seems that there are more cultural groups today, compared to the past because of groups such as LGBTQ and an increase in immigration to America from more countries than just Europe and Africa. In America, we expect people to know how to speak English and have a basic understanding of the American culture, but for the most part, Americans lack a willingness to understand other people’s cultures. While some do not want to take the time to understand different cultures, those individuals who work with diverse populations have to understand different cultures in order to truly help those from diverse situations. In order to learn

Having discussed what philosophy is, we now consider why it is important to study philosophy. We will divide our discussion into 2 parts: (1) Why is it important for all persons in general and (2) Why is it specifically important for Christians to study philosophy? We begin, in true philosophic fashion, by examining the question itself: what we do mean by philosophy being important and we introduce the idea of the philosophic mindset. We then examine 5 reasons why it is important for all persons to adopt the philosophic mindset. We will end by providing an overview of the different branches of philosophy.

Pluralist vs. Elitist American politics has been associated mostly by a mixture of pluralism and elitism beliefs with no clear winner on which belief is suitable for our country. Both sides have valid points and both have weaknesses. Some believe that pluralism is the most present in American politics. Others believe that Elitism is the most present in American politics. In reality, both are present in our politics.

It’s a sin to not write this. For finishing this will allow me to acquire one fourth of my grade on the most-anticipated subject—A subject that is hard, yet easy; A subject able to be both loved and despised; A subject whose aim is to know thy self, yet, when thoroughly studied, you would end up losing what you think is yours. This subject I am babbling about is not just a subject; It is the subject: Philosophy.

Philosophy is amongst the most difficult and challenging subjects anyone can discuss. Philosophy has changed throughout the years and it can be inquiring and critical. Most philosophers have different theories on how the world should be and there are many issues and questions that arise. What is real; what is truth; what is the good; is the mind something separate from the body; and are we free, or are our actions determined so that we no longer have any control or influence? Immanuel Kant and Ayn Rand are two Philosophers that are respected for their different philosophies. Their lives, influences, and thoughts of how we should be as a society are ideas that make them so different.

Pragmatism is described in the book as a method for settling philosophical disputes. It is based on the pragmatic theory of truth. This theory says that a 'proposition p is true if and only if the belief that 'p is true' works'; (Voices of Wisdom, 346). In order

In view of the fact that many men, under the influence of science or of practical affairs, are inclined to doubt whether philosophy is anything better than innocent but useless trifling, hair-splitting distinctions and controversies on matters concerning which knowledge s impossible.

What makes philosophy so fascinating, is that we half-know everything. There is no person who has lived or who lives in the world that

My philosophy was quite encouraged by the underlying branches of philosophy that are found in a Pragmatist. I strongly believe that we are here to educate the children, if we are not attending to their needs then we are truly not teaching. Therefore, I bring up the three branches of philosophy: metaphysics, epistemology and axiology according to a pragmatist point of view. The metaphysics believes that the truth is within the child, the individual. The epistemology finds reality within the child's construction of knowledge. The axiology finds value in the child becoming self-actualized; where the child reaches the highest level that they can. It is clearly seen that Pragmatist view goes side by side with my idea of education being all about the child.

Currently, three prominent ideologies dominate the governing style of the world today: socialism, liberalism and conservatism. Many political groups and leaders often follow or claim to follow a specific ideology. On the other side of the spectrum for those who follow one ideology specific, there are some individuals that knowingly or unknowingly that follow none and focus on practicality of ideas. Those individuals are referred to as pragmatist. According to Encyclopædia Britannica, pragmatism is based on the principle that emphasis on the usefulness, workability, and practicality of ideas, policies, and proposals (“Pragmatism”, n.d). Basically, a pragmatist would focus on the actions and/or the consequences rather than the doctrine. Even

Pragmatism first appeared in the late nineteenth century, but was only widely accepted after World War II. This philosophy assumed that life has a purpose and that rivals theories about man and the world have to be tested against this purpose. Pragmatism caught on in the United States because Americans were focused on results and achieving their goals (Troxell 1). What is known as Pragmatism was a broad philosophical movement that affected the American way of thinking in logic and science, psychology and religion, and ethics and social behavior.

In “The Value of Philosophy”, Bertrand Russell— “an important social critic and one of the greatest philosophers of the 20th century”—refutes the idea of philosophy being pointless and a waste of time (The Value of Philosophy). Although philosophers have not agreed on one exact definition for this branch of knowledge, philosophy is generally understood as an “academic discipline” which aims to cover a variety of topics through arguing, inquiring, assuming, and “testing arguments for weakness” in order to gain knowledge and grasp a better sense of life (Lectures 1-2, Package). Russell makes strong arguments for philosophy being beneficial, especially when one is open to seeking a deeper understanding of life and why the universe operates the way that it does. Despite philosophy’s inability to definitively answer the questions that it seeks to understand, in Russell’s opinion, it holds a great amount of value—one of those values being uncertainty.

The most practical of analytical philosophy also included Moore, and Carnape. The American (neo) pragmatism philosophy is a philosophical movement that was given systematic terms by Charles Sanders Peirce and William James and later taken up and revamped by John Dewey. Pragmatists stress the practical purpose of knowledge as a way for acclimatizing to reality and controlling it. Pragmatism concur with empiricism in its emphasis on the importance of experience over a priori reasoning. However the truth had customarily been discussed in terms of communication with reality or in terms of coherence pragmatism embraces that truth is to be sought in the process of verification. Pragmatists translates ideas as means and plans of action rather than as images of reality; more specifically, they are recommendations and anticipations of possible conduct, hypotheses or forecasts of what will result from a given action, or ways of organizing behavior(Answer,2010)

Without philosophy the world would be incomplete. It is common knowledge that there is gray in every argument, even the most miniscule, it is never black or white. Philosophy is what the gray area consists of, different beliefs and ideas that cannot fit in either of the two groups. That is what makes philosophy significant; there are no limits to it. There are no boundaries to what the

Philosophy is the careful study if the states of, validity, existence, and conduct. It comes from the Greek word, philosophia, which translates into “the love of wisdom”. Philosophy encompasses a vast range of topics and ever person, place, thing, and idea has its roots embedded in it. For the purpose of this paper, I will be only covering the branches of epistemology, metaphysics, and ethics. These branches serve as the building blocks for studying and teaching philosophy. While examining these building blocks, I will argue why philosophy should be studied.