CONTEMPORARY EPISTEMOLOGISTS Flashcards
What is pragmatism? Who are the philosophers associated with pragmatism?
Philosophers: William James, Charles Pierce, John Dewey
-Pragmatists believe that ideas that are meaningful make a practical difference in our lives
-Knowledge involves producing things for a purpose based on what you believe works
-A pragmatist acts on a given idea in certain circumstances, experimetation to see what works best
What is deconstructionism? Who is the philosopher associated with this?
Philosopher: Jacques Darrida
-D takes apart language to get at its meaning
-He believes that the meaning of language is unstable and changes over time
-In some cases, a word may mean one thing on one occasion and on another occasion it can have different meanings for different people
-Decontructionists do not trust language and argue that we cannot be certain about our knowledge of the world
What is edifying? Who is the philosopher associated with it?
Philosopher: Richard Rorty
-He argues that people are constantly redefining the world, and that language is constantly changing to meet our needs
-different groups within society will develop their own language to communicate what they do and potentially justify their actions
-Edifying accounts for the changing nature of knowledge
