Course Director: H. Jackman

Office: 434 South Ross

Office hours: TBA

Course Time: T, TH: 2:30-5:30

Office phone: 736 2100 x77575

E-mail: hjackman@yorku.ca

Web Page: www.jackman.org

Pragmatism emerged as a major philosophical movement at the turn of the last century and has experienced a resurgence at the turn of this one. This course will focus on the work of the most influential of the Pragmatists, William James.  James's distinctive critique of traditional philosophy flowed from both his naturalistic streak and his emphasis on the relation between thought and action, and we will be investigating how the combination of these led James to suggest a number of radical revisions to our concepts of truth, meaning and reality.

Technical requirements for taking the course: [List what students will need in order to fully participate in your course. If you are expecting that students participate in your course 1) through video conferencing and 2) that they also appear on video (e.g., for tutorial/seminar discussion, remote proctoring, oral exams, etc.), please let them know upfront. In addition to stable, higher-speed Internet connection, these students will need a computer with webcam and microphone, and/or a smart device with these features.]

Here are some useful links for student computing information, resources and help:

Student Guide to Moodle

Zoom@YorkU Best Practices 

Zoom@YorkU User Reference Guide

Computing for Students Website

Student Guide to eLearning at York University

To determine Internet connection and speed, there are online tests, such as Speedtest, that can be run.]

Times and locations:  T, TH, 2:30-5:30 (online)

Please note that this is a course that depends on remote teaching and learning. There will be no in-person interactions or activities on campus.

Virtual office hours: T, TH 5:30-6:00 and by Apt.

All of the required texts are in the course kit available on the eClass page.

Seminar participation:                                                    15%

Class Presentation:                                                        15%

Term Paper (2000 words):                                             35%               (Due Aug 15)

Final Exam (Oral, online):                                               35%              (Aug 16-23)

July 2: Introduction: James’s life and Background

“Personal Depression and Recovery”, “The Present Dilemma of Philosophy”, “The Sick Soul”

July 4:   Psychology and Philosophy I: Habit and the Stream of Thought

“The Stream of Thought”. “Habit”

July9: Psychology and Philosophy II: Conceptions and the A Priori

“Conception”, “Necessary Truths and the Effects of Experience”

July 11: Rationality, Belief and Faith I

“Remarks on Spencer’s Definition of Mind as Correspondence”,  “The Sentiment of Rationality”

1. S. Peirce: “Some Consequences of Four Incapacities”, “The Fixation of Belief”

July 16: Rationality, Belief and Faith II

“The Will to Believe”,  “Faith and the Right to Believe”, “The Dilemma of Determinism”

July 18: Pragmatism and Meaning

1. S. Peirce: “How to Make our Ideas Clear”, “The Doctrine of Chances”

“Philosophical Conceptions and Practical Results”, “What Pragmatism Means” [first part], “Some Metaphysical Problems Pragmatically Considered”

July 23: Pragmatism and Reference

“Review of Royce’s The Religious Aspect of Philosophy” , “The Function of Cognition”, “The Essence of Humanism”, “Tigers in India, “The Relation between Knower and Known”, Letter to Renouvier

July 25:  Pragmatism  and Truth I: Belief and the Nature of Truth

“What Pragmatism Means” [second part], “Pragmatism and Common Sense”, “Pragmatism’s Conception of truth”, “Pragmatism and Humanism”, “[Pragmatism and Radical Empiricism]”, “A Dialogue”,   “Interview in [The] New York Times, 1907”, “Notes from James’s 1908 Harvard discussion of Pragmatism”

July 30: Pragmatism  and Truth II: Conceptions and Truth

“Percept and Concept – The Import of Concepts, The Abuse of Concepts, Some Corollaries” , “The Compounding of Consciousness”, “Bergson and His Critique of Intellectualism”

Aug 1: Ethics and Religion I: Ethics    

“The Moral Philosopher and the Moral Life” , “On a Certain Blindness in Human Beings”, “What makes Life Significant”, “The Moral Equivalent of War”

Aug 8: Ethics and Religion II: Religion

“[Experience and Religion: A comment]”, “Circumscription of the [Religious] Topic” , Conclusion & Postscript to The Varieties of Religious Experience, “Pragmatism and Religion” , “Faith and the Right to Believe”, “Answers to Pratt Questionair on Religious Belief”

Aug 13: Radical Empiricism,  Reception, and Legacy

“Radical Empiricism: 1897”, “Radical Empiricism: 1909”, “Does Consciousness Exist”, “How Two Minds Can know One thing”, “A World of Pure Experience”, “The Knowing of Things Together”.

1. To introduce students in detail to the philosophy and intellectual context of at least one major figure in the Pragmatist tradition.
2. Master the writing of a substantial philosophy research paper.
3. To develop a familiarity with Pragmatism as a philosophical approach.
4. Learn how to present philosophical ideas to others in an online seminar setting.