American Philosophy Today And Tomorrow

Excerpt from American Philosophy Today and Tomorrow This book presents the views of twenty-five representative American thinkers on the problems with which the times confront the American as philosopher, and the solutions which Americans must find for tomorrow. The contributors are men living and working in all the diverse areas of the American scene - in Texas, in California, in the Middle West, in New England, in the Atlantic States. Few live where they were born and grew up; many follow vocations for which they were not trained and perhaps did not intend to seek. All but one or two have passed through the formal discipline in philosophy of the schools; they are "doctors of philosophy"; and most of them earn their livings by teaching philosophy or psychology in one or another of the institutions of higher learning of the land. But some have employed their philosophic training in the service of disciplines not strictly philosophic, such as education or economics; others have turned their training to non-pedagogical uses, such as literature, public service, the law, the labor movement, religion, politics, and racial betterment; several have combined academic teaching with these non-academic interests. Thus the volume derives directly not alone from the intrinsic interests of the philosophical discipline as such, but equally direct experience with major preoccupations of the national life also enters into the making of whatever message it conveys. This message may or may not have been uttered before; but the younger generation of American philosophers who figure most numerously in the pages of this book have not elsewhere made public their philosophic credos. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

Excerpt from American Philosophy Today and Tomorrow What each author presents here, he presents newly, and he presents it independently, as his personal Vision of today's philosophic problem and tomorrow's philosophic solution. Each has written down his own heart and mind, without any meeting with his fellow-contributors, without consultation, without dis cussion. Thus the book is automatically a representative cross section of American philosophy in the making 5 within the limits of its size and scope it provides a true sample of the disposition of living philosophy in the United States. These twenty-five essays come from the pens of twenty-five men of twenty-five different temperaments, origins, backgrounds, interests and avo cations. They tell in as many personal idioms why and how they come to believe as they do. From reading them there may arise a sense that an identical issue holds the attention of the various philosophers, with their different preoccupations and interests, that in Spite of the independence of their essays from one another, they manifest a consensus regarding the principles and methods of settling the issue. Or the reader may come to feel that no common View emerges, he may hear only separate and contradictory voices, each crying alone in its wilderness. Or he may find them separating into little groups and parties and sects, arrayed against one another and irreconcilable. Whichever of these three patterns the reader finds, he may be assured that he has a faithful picture of the struggle of ideas and ideals in American life upon the plane of philosophy. To give this picture an indispensable point of reference, the editors have suggested that each contributor write a brief ac count of himself with which to preface his essay. These, the editors believe, will be found not only to frame the picture, but to point it up. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

The Ideal of Rationality presents an evaluation of all the main varieties of rationalism, in clear and jargon-free language. Different notions of rationality - such as means-end, conception, hedonism, and the evil-avoidance view - are examined and rejected, in favor of the theory that to act rationally is to 'act for the best', a theory Nathanson characterizes as "critical pluralism". Among present-day thinkers whose ideas are scrutinized are Richard Brandt, Bernard Gert, Gilbert Harman, John Kekes, Robert Nozick, Karl Popper, and John Rawls.

American Philosophy offers the first historically framed introduction to the tradition of American philosophy and its contemporary engagement with the world. Born out of the social and political turmoil of the Civil War, American philosophy was a means of dealing with conflict and change. In the turbulence of the 21st century, this remains as relevant as ever. Placing the work of present-day American philosophers in the context of a history of resistance, through a philosophical tradition marked by a commitment to pluralism, fallibilism and liberation, this book tells the story of a philosophy shaped by major events that call for reflection and illustrates the ways in which philosophy is relevant to lived experience. This book presents a survey of the historical development of American philosophy, as well as coverage of key contemporary issues in America including race theory, feminism, indigenous peoples, and environmentalism and is the ideal introduction to the work of the major American thinkers, past and present, and the sheer breadth of their ideas and influence.

This book presents the first introduction to African American academic philosophers, exploring their concepts and ideas and revealing the critical part they have played in the formation of philosophy in the USA. The book begins with the early years of educational attainment by African American philosophers in the 1860s. To demonstrate the impact of their philosophical work on general problems in the discipline, chapters are broken down into four major areas of study: Axiology, Social Science, Philosophy of Religion and Philosophy of Science. Providing personal narratives on individual philosophers and examining the work of figures such as H. T. Johnson, William D. Johnson, Joyce Mitchell Cooke, Adrian Piper, William R. Jones, Roy D. Morrison, Eugene C. Holmes, and William A. Banner, the book challenges the myth that philosophy is exclusively a white academic discipline. Packed with examples of struggles and triumphs, this engaging introduction is a much-needed approach to studying philosophy today.

American Philosophies offers the first historically framed introduction to the tradition of American philosophy and its contemporary engagement with the world. Born out of the social and political turmoil of the Civil War, American philosophy was a means of dealing with conflict and change. In the turbulence of the 21st century, this remains as relevant as ever. Placing the work of present-day American philosophers in the context of a history of resistance, through a philosophical tradition marked by a commitment to pluralism, fallibilism and liberation, this book tells the story of philosophies shaped by major events and illustrates the ways in which philosophy is relevant to lived experience. The 2nd edition of this book presents a survey of the historical development of American philosophy, as well as coverage of key contemporary issues in America including race theory, feminism, gender, indigenous peoples, philosophies of disability and environmentalism. It also takes seriously the dramatic political and social machinations of the past seven years and engages with emerging voices and traditions. This is a substantial and provocative introduction to the work of the major American thinkers and their contemporary interlocuters.

An exploration of how American Jewish thinkers grapple with the notion of being the isolated “Chosen People” in a nation that is a melting pot. What does it mean to be a Jew in America? What opportunities and what threats does the great melting pot represent for a group that has traditionally defined itself as “a people that must dwell alone?” Although for centuries the notion of “The Chosen People” sustained Jewish identity, America, by offering Jewish immigrants an unprecedented degree of participation in the larger society, threatened to erode their Jewish identity and sense of separateness. Arnold M. Eisen charts the attempts of American Jewish thinkers to adapt the notion of chosenness to an American context. Through an examination of sermons, essays, debates, prayer-book revisions, and theological literature, Eisen traces the ways in which American rabbis and theologians—Reconstructionist, Conservative, and Orthodox thinkers—effected a compromise between exclusivity and participation that allowed Jews to adapt to American life while simultaneously enhancing Jewish tradition and identity. “This is a book of extraordinary quality and importance. In tracing the encounter of Jews (the chosen people) and America (the chosen nation) . . . Eisen has given the American Jewish community a new understanding of itself.” —American Jewish Archives “One of the most significant books on American Jewish thought written in recent years.” —Choice