Pragmatics and Semantics
Many modern philosophical perspectives focus on semantics. For example, Brandom focuses on linguistic meaning (albeit from a pragmatic perspective).
Others adopt a more holistic view of pragmatics, like relevance theory, which attempts to understand the processes of an utterance by a listener. This method tends to overlook other aspects of pragmatics, like epistemic discussions on truth.
What exactly is pragmatism?
Pragmatism is a viable alternative to continental philosophy and analytic philosophy. Charles Sanders Peirce conceived it and William James extended it. Later, Josiah Royce developed the philosophy. It had a significant impact on areas of inquiry that span from philosophy of science to theology, but also found a place within the philosophy of ethics as well as aesthetics, philosophy of language, and social theory. The pragmatist tradition continues grow.
The pragmatic maxim is at the core of classical pragmatism. It is a rule that clarifies the meaning of hypotheses by examining their 'practical implications', or their implications for the experience of specific situations. This leads to a distinctive epistemological outlook that is a form of 'inquiry-based epistemology', and an anti-Cartesian interpretation of the norms that govern inquiry. The early pragmatists were largely divided on the issue of whether pragmatism should conceive of itself as a philosophical system that focuses on a monism of truth (following Peirce), or a broad-based alethic pluralism (James and Dewey).
A central issue for pragmatist philosophers is understanding what knowledge actually is. Some pragmatists, such as Rorty are likely to be skeptical of knowledge that is based on the basis of 'instantaneous' experiences. Others, like Peirce and James are skeptical of the theory of correspondence that claims to be true which holds that true beliefs are those that represent reality 'correctly'.
Other pragmatism-related issues include the relationship between beliefs and reality, the nature of human rationality, the role of values and virtues, and the significance of life. Pragmatists have also developed a range of theories and methods, including those in semiotics and the philosophy of language. They also have explored areas like philosophy of religion, philosophy, theology, ethics, and science. Some, such as Peirce and Royce are epistemological relativists, while others believe that such relativism is completely wrong. The late 20th century saw an increase in interest in classical pragmatics. This led to a myriad of new developments. They include the concept of a "near-side" pragmatics which is concerned with the resolution of ambiguity, indexicals, demonstratives and anaphors, as well as a "far-side" pragmatics which looks at the semantics in discourses.
What is the relation between what is said and what is done?
Semantics and Pragmatics are often thought of as being at opposite ends of the continuum with semantics on the close side and pragmatics on the far side. Carston for pragmatickr instance asserts that modern pragmatics has at least three principal lines: those who see it as an approach to philosophy that is reminiscent of Grice, those who focus its interaction with grammar and those who are concerned with utterance interpretation. Near-side pragmatics is believed to include issues like clarification of ambiguity or vagueness, reference to proper names, indexicals and demonstratives, anaphors, as well as presupposition. It is also believed to cover some issues involving specific descriptions.
What is the relation between semantics and pragmatism?
Pragmatics is the study of meaning within the context of language. It is a branch of linguistics which studies the way that people employ language to convey various meanings. It is often contrasted to semantics, which focuses on the literal meaning of words in a sentence or chunk of discourse.
The relationship between pragmatism, semantics and their interrelationships is complex. The main distinction is that pragmatics takes into account other aspects besides literal meanings of words, which includes the intended meaning and the context that a statement was made. This allows for a more nuanced understanding of the meaning behind an expression. Semantics is also restricted to the relationship between words, whereas pragmatics is more concerned with the relationships between interlocutors (people who are in an exchange) and their contextual characteristics.
In recent years, neopragmatism has focused heavily on the philosophy of metaphilosophy and language. It has abandoned the metaphysics and value theories of classical pragmatism. However, some neopragmatists are working to develop a metaethics that draws on classical pragmatism's ideas of pragmatics and experiences.
Classical pragmatics was first developed by Charles Sanders Peirce and William James. Both were influential thinkers and wrote a variety of books. Their works are still widely read today.
Although pragmatism can be a good alternative to the continental and analytic philosophical mainstream, it is not without critics. Some philosophers, for example, have said that deconstructionism isn't a truly new philosophical approach and that pragmatism simply represents an expression.
In addition to these critics pragmatism was challenged by technological and scientific developments. For instance, pragmatists have struggled to reconcile their views regarding science with the advancement of evolutionary theory, which was developed by a non-pragmatist Richard Dawkins.
Despite these difficulties the pragmatism movement continues to grow in its popularity throughout the world. It is a crucial third option to the analytic and continental philosophical traditions, and has a variety of practical applications. It is a growing field of study. Many schools of thought have developed and incorporated pragmatism elements in their own philosophical frameworks. Whether you are looking to learn more about pragmatism or incorporating it in your everyday life, there are plenty of sources available.