PRAGMATISM. A system of philosophy with which are closely associated the names of the American philosophers William James and John Dewey and the English philosopher F. C. S. Schiller. The term, which is derived from the Greek pragma " practice," was first employed (ISIS) by Charles Peirce of America. William James explains that the pragmatic method in itself implies not particular results, but simply an attitude of orientation. " The attitude of looking away from first things, principles, categories,' supposed necessities; and of looking towards last things, fruits, consequences, facts." To the pragmatist Truth in our ideas and beliefs means their power to work. It means that " ideas (which themselves are but parts of our experience) become true just in so far as they help us to get into satisfactory relation with other parts of our experience." As regards its attitude towards theology, it is pointed out that pragmatism has no a priori prejudices against this. " If theological ideas prove to have a value for concrete life, they will be true, for pragmatism, in the sense of being good for so much. For how much more they are true will depend entirely on their relations to the other truths that also have to be acknowledged." If a theological idea is pragmatically successful, its truth ought not to be denied. In Pragmatism the " only test of probable truth is what works best in the way of lead ing us, what fits every part of life best and combines with the collectivity of experience's demands, nothing being omitted. If theological ideas should do this, if the
notion of God, in particular, Should prove to do it, how could pragmatism possibly deny God's existence? " If it be asked whether pragmatism is optimistic or pessimistic. the answer is that it is best described by a term that denotes a position midway between optimism and pessi mism : pragmatism is melioristic. It should be added, finally, that pragmatism favours pluralism. " Prag matism, pending the final empirical ascertainment of just what the balance of union and disunion among things may be, must obviously range herself upon the pluralistic side. Some day. she admits. even total union, with one knower, one origin, and a universe consolidated in every conceivable way, may turn out to be the most acceptable of all hypotheses. Meanwhile the opposite hypothesis, of a world imperfectly unified still, and perhaps always to remain so, must be sincerely entertained. This latter hypothesis is pluralism's doctrine. Since absolute monism forbids its being even considered seriously, branding it as irrational from the start, it is clear that pragmatism] must turn its back on absolute monism, and follow pluralism's more empirical path." See William James, Pragmatism, 1907.