Pragmatism: A New Name for Some Old Ways of ThinkingJames, William
Philosophy
Pragmatism: A New Name for Some Old Ways of Thinking
James, William
Pragmatism
'REALITY' IS IN GENERAL WHAT TRUTHS HAVE TO TAKE ACCOUNT OF; [Footnote:
Mr. Taylor in his Elements of Metaphysics uses this excellent pragmatic
definition.] and the FIRST part of reality from this point of view is
the flux of our sensations. Sensations are forced upon us, coming we
know not whence. Over their nature, order, and quantity we have as good
as no control. THEY are neither true nor false; they simply ARE. It is
only what we say about them, only the names we give them, our theories
of their source and nature and remote relations, that may be true or
not.
The SECOND part of reality, as something that our beliefs must also
obediently take account of, is the RELATIONS that obtain between our
sensations or between their copies in our minds. This part falls into
two sub-parts: 1) the relations that are mutable and accidental, as
those of date and place; and 2) those that are fixed and essential
because they are grounded on the inner natures of their terms--such as
likeness and unlikeness. Both sorts of relation are matters of immediate
perception. Both are 'facts.' But it is the latter kind of fact that
forms the more important sub-part of reality for our theories of
knowledge. Inner relations namely are 'eternal,' are perceived whenever
their sensible terms are compared; and of them our thought--mathematical
and logical thought, so-called--must eternally take account.
The THIRD part of reality, additional to these perceptions (tho largely
based upon them), is the PREVIOUS TRUTHS of which every new inquiry
takes account. This third part is a much less obdurately resisting
factor: it often ends by giving way. In speaking of these three portions
of reality as at all times controlling our belief's formation, I am only
reminding you of what we heard in our last hour.
Now however fixed these elements of reality may be, we still have a
certain freedom in our dealings with them. Take our sensations. THAT
they are is undoubtedly beyond our control; but WHICH we attend to,
note, and make emphatic in our conclusions depends on our own interests;
and, according as we lay the emphasis here or there, quite different
formulations of truth result. We read the same facts differently.
'Waterloo,' with the same fixed details, spells a 'victory' for an
englishman; for a frenchman it spells a 'defeat.' So, for an optimist
philosopher the universe spells victory, for a pessimist, defeat.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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