John Dewey's Quest for Unity

John Dewey's Quest for Unity PDF Author: Richard M. Gale
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 224

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Book Description
In this appreciation of John Dewey's enormous contribution to American philosophy, Richard M Gale argues that what makes Dewey's philosophy unique and exciting is his attempt to synthesize what Gale calls 'Prometheanism' with Dewey's unique brand of mysticism. As Gale points out, Dewey celebrated human beings as Promethean creators of meaning and value through the active control of nature. But at the same time, Dewey created a synthesis whereby a sort of mystical unifying experience results from the subject's active engagement with the environment through inquiry. Paradoxically, the active subject becomes passive in this synthesis to achieve unification with a shared spiritual reality, which Dewey expressed as a 'common faith'. Gale goes on to show that for Dewey artistic creation is the paradigm of this synthesis. In a work of art, both artist and all who appreciate the creation are united in a shared experience that is the result of an active, creative engagement with the environment. But this synthesis also holds for our efforts to gain knowledge and act morally. This in-depth analysis of one of America's great philosophers will make a valuable addition to the libraries of students and scholars of John Dewey and American philosophy.

John Dewey's Quest for Unity

John Dewey's Quest for Unity PDF Author: Richard M. Gale
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 224

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Book Description
In this appreciation of John Dewey's enormous contribution to American philosophy, Richard M Gale argues that what makes Dewey's philosophy unique and exciting is his attempt to synthesize what Gale calls 'Prometheanism' with Dewey's unique brand of mysticism. As Gale points out, Dewey celebrated human beings as Promethean creators of meaning and value through the active control of nature. But at the same time, Dewey created a synthesis whereby a sort of mystical unifying experience results from the subject's active engagement with the environment through inquiry. Paradoxically, the active subject becomes passive in this synthesis to achieve unification with a shared spiritual reality, which Dewey expressed as a 'common faith'. Gale goes on to show that for Dewey artistic creation is the paradigm of this synthesis. In a work of art, both artist and all who appreciate the creation are united in a shared experience that is the result of an active, creative engagement with the environment. But this synthesis also holds for our efforts to gain knowledge and act morally. This in-depth analysis of one of America's great philosophers will make a valuable addition to the libraries of students and scholars of John Dewey and American philosophy.

A Search for Unity in Diversity

A Search for Unity in Diversity PDF Author: James Allan Good
Publisher: Lexington Books
ISBN: 9780739113608
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 330

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Book Description
The humanistic/historicist Hegel -- American Hegelianism, 1830-1900 -- Dewey in Burlington and Baltimore, 1859-1884 -- Dewey in Michigan, 1884-1894 -- Dewey's transitional years, 1894-1904 -- From actualism to brutalism, 1904-1916.

Democracy and Education

Democracy and Education PDF Author: John Dewey
Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
ISBN:
Category : Juvenile Nonfiction
Languages : en
Pages : 456

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Book Description
. Renewal of Life by Transmission. The most notable distinction between living and inanimate things is that the former maintain themselves by renewal. A stone when struck resists. If its resistance is greater than the force of the blow struck, it remains outwardly unchanged. Otherwise, it is shattered into smaller bits. Never does the stone attempt to react in such a way that it may maintain itself against the blow, much less so as to render the blow a contributing factor to its own continued action. While the living thing may easily be crushed by superior force, it none the less tries to turn the energies which act upon it into means of its own further existence. If it cannot do so, it does not just split into smaller pieces (at least in the higher forms of life), but loses its identity as a living thing. As long as it endures, it struggles to use surrounding energies in its own behalf. It uses light, air, moisture, and the material of soil. To say that it uses them is to say that it turns them into means of its own conservation. As long as it is growing, the energy it expends in thus turning the environment to account is more than compensated for by the return it gets: it grows. Understanding the word "control" in this sense, it may be said that a living being is one that subjugates and controls for its own continued activity the energies that would otherwise use it up. Life is a self-renewing process through action upon the environment.

John Dewey

John Dewey PDF Author: Steven Rockefeller
Publisher: Columbia University Press
ISBN: 0231073496
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 702

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Book Description
Combining ?biography and intellectual history, Steven Rockefeller offers an illuminating introduction to the philosophy of John Dewey, with special emphasis on the evolution of the religious faith and moral vision at the heart of his thought. This study pays particular attention to Dewey's radical democratic reconstruction of Christianity and his many contributions to the American tradition of spiritual democracy. Rockefeller presents the first full exploration of Dewey's religious thought, including its mystical dimension. Covering Dewey's entire intellectual life, the author provides a clear introduction to Dewey's early neo-Hegelian idealism as well as to his later naturalistic metaphysics, epistemology, theory of education, theory of evaluation, and philosophy of religion. The author tells the story of the evolution of this faith and philosophical vision, offering fresh insight into the enduring value of the thought of America's foremost philosopher.

Introducing Dewey

Introducing Dewey PDF Author: Paul Fairfield
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 135029781X
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 241

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Book Description
This introduction to one of the most influential philosophers in American history examines every major dimension of John Dewey's philosophy, from his early post-Hegelian idealism to pragmatic experimentalism, as well as his views on ethics and political theory, philosophy of education, aesthetics, and philosophy of religion. It situates Dewey's thought in the context of his time (1859-1952) and personal biography while also discussing his considerable work as America's foremost public intellectual through the first half of the 20th century. With a particular focus on how Dewey's thought can be applied to real life and its particular relevance to the contemporary moment, Introducing Dewey is the ideal starting point for anyone with an interest in this seminal figure in American philosophy.

Dewey

Dewey PDF Author: Steven Fesmire
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1136725350
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 301

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Book Description
John Dewey (1859 - 1952) was the dominant voice in American philosophy through the World Wars, the Great Depression, and the nascent years of the Cold War. With a professional career spanning three generations and a profile that no public intellectual has operated on in the U.S. since, Dewey's biographer Robert Westbrook accurately describes him as "the most important philosopher in modern American history." In this superb and engaging introduction, Steven Fesmire begins with a chapter on Dewey’s life and works, before discussing and assessing Dewey's key ideas across the major disciplines in philosophy; including metaphysics, epistemology, aesthetics, ethics, educational philosophy, social-political philosophy, and religious philosophy. This is an invaluable introduction and guide to this deeply influential philosopher and his legacy, and essential reading for anyone coming to Dewey's work for the first time.

The Undiscovered Dewey

The Undiscovered Dewey PDF Author: Melvin L. Rogers
Publisher: Columbia University Press
ISBN: 9780231144865
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 364

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Book Description
The Undiscovered Dewey explores the profound influence of evolution and its corresponding ideas of contingency and uncertainty on John Dewey's philosophy of action, particularly its argument that inquiry proceeds from the uncertainty of human activity. Dewey separated the meaningfulness of inquiry from a larger metaphysical story concerning the certainty of human progress. He then connected this thread to the way in which our reflective capacities aid us in improving our lives. Dewey therefore launched a new understanding of the modern self that encouraged intervention in social and natural environments but which nonetheless demanded courage and humility because of the intimate relationship between action and uncertainty. Melvin L. Rogers explicitly connects Dewey's theory of inquiry to his religious, moral, and political philosophy. He argues that, contrary to common belief, Dewey sought a place for religious commitment within a democratic society sensitive to modern pluralism. Against those who regard Dewey as indifferent to moral conflict, Rogers points to Dewey's appreciation for the incommensurability of our ethical commitments. His deep respect for modern pluralism, argues Rogers, led Dewey to articulate a negotiation between experts and the public so that power did not lapse into domination. Exhibiting an abiding faith in the reflective and contestable character of inquiry, Dewey strongly engaged with the complexity of our religious, moral, and political lives.

The Unity of Man According to John Dewey

The Unity of Man According to John Dewey PDF Author: Bernard P. Wrocklage (s.v.d.)
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 100

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Book Description


John Dewey's Philosophy of Spirit, with the 1897 Lecture on Hegel

John Dewey's Philosophy of Spirit, with the 1897 Lecture on Hegel PDF Author: John R. Shook
Publisher: Fordham Univ Press
ISBN: 0823231380
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 214

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Book Description
This book furthers the research begun in John Shook's "Dewey's Empirical Theory of Knowledge and Reality" (2000) and James Good's "A Search for Unity in Diversity: The 'Permanent Hegelian Deposit' in the Philosophy of John Dewey" (2006). Both authors have countered the traditional narrative of Dewey's intellectual development by arguing that he never made a clean break from Hegel. This volume explores Dewey's philosophy of religion in general and his inheritance of a 'philosophy of spirit' from Hegel in particular. Shook and Good agree that Dewey did have a philosophy of spirit, that it was heavily indebted to Hegelian themes, and that Dewey's mature philosophy of religion is a key component of his social and political theory. In addition to Dewey's 1897 lecture on Hegel's Philosophy of Spirit, the book contains an essay by Shook that examines the role of religion throughout Dewey's oeuvre, and an essay by Good that closely analyzes Dewey's lecture. The primary thrust of the volume is to demonstrate that Dewey's understanding of the functions of religion, religious experience, and democratic politics are profoundly indebted to Hegel. Of special significance for Dewey's maturing thought is his historicist and progressive view of Hegel's treatment of freedom, religion, morality, and politics. For Dewey, Hegel's philosophy of spirit leads directly towards the democratic fellowship of common humanity, which becomes the cornerstone of Dewey's own politics

Knowledge in Contemporary Philosophy

Knowledge in Contemporary Philosophy PDF Author: Stephen Hetherington
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 1474258786
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 304

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Book Description
The Philosophy of Knowledge: A History presents the history of one of Western philosophy's greatest challenges: understanding the nature of knowledge. Divided chronologically into four volumes, it follows conceptions of knowledge that have been proposed, defended, replaced, and proposed anew by ancient, medieval, modern and contemporary philosophers. This volume covers contemporary discussions about scientific, social and self-knowledge and attempts to understand knowledge naturalistically, contextually and normatively. With original insights into the vast sweep of ways in which philosophers have sought to understand knowledge, The Philosophy of Knowledge: A History embraces what is vital and evolving within contemporary epistemology. Overseen by an international team of leading philosophers and featuring 50 specially-commissioned chapters, this is a major collection on one of philosophy's defining topics.