Richard J. Bernstein

Christopher J. Voparil

The first comprehensive collection of the work of Richard Rorty (1931-2007), The Rorty Reader brings together the influential American philosopher’s essential essays from over four decades of writings. Offers a comprehensive introduction to Richard Rorty's life and body of work Brings key essays published across many volumes and journals into one collection, including selections from his final volume of philosophical papers, Philosophy as Cultural Politics (2007)) Contains the previously unpublished (in English) essay, “Redemption from Egotism” Includes in-depth interviews, and several revealing autobiographical pieces Represents the fullest portrait available today on Rorty’s relationship with American pragmatism and the trajectory of his thought

The Rorty Reader

This book offers a fresh perspective on Richard Rorty by situating his work in the arena of political theory. Reinterpreting Rorty's much-maligned antirepresentationalism as a Romantic affirmation of the power of imaginative writing, Voparil firmly grounds Rorty in an American...

Politics and Vision

Richard Rorty

Susan Dieleman

David Rondel

Introduction : Perspectives on Pragmatism and Justice / Susan Dieleman, David Rondel, and Christopher J. Voparil -- Justice as a Larger Loyalty / Richard Rorty -- Abnormal Justice / Nancy Fraser -- Pragmatism's Contribution to Nonideal Theorizing: Fraser, Addams, and Rorty / Christopher J. Voparil -- Empirical Approaches to Injustice : Elizabeth Anderson and the Pragmatists -- Ideal and Actual in Dewey's Political Theory / Matthew Festenstein -- Justice in Context / Ruth Anna Putnam -- Realism, Pragmatism, and Critical Social Epistemology / Susan Dieleman -- Social Inequality, Power, and Politics : Intersectionality in Dialogue with American Pragmatism / Patricia Hill Collins -- Pragmatism and Dreams of Justice : Between Radical Black Philosophy and Deweyan Democracy / V. Denise James -- Contesting Injustice : Why Pragmatist Political Thought Needs Du Bois / Colin Koopman -- Pragmatism, Racial Injustice, and Epistemic Insurrection : Toward an Insurrectionist Pragmatism / José Medina -- An Aesthetics of Resistance : Deweyan Experimentalism and Epistemic Injustice / Paul C. Taylor -- Setting Aside Hope : A Pragmatist Approach to Racial Justice / Shannon Sullivan -- Reconsidering Deweyan Democracy / Hilary Putnam -- Dewey and the Problem of Justice / Peter Manicas -- (What) Can Pragmatists Think About Justice? : Pragmatism and Liberal Egalitarianism / Robert B. Talisse -- A Pragmatist Account of Legitimacy and Authority : Holmes, Ramsey, and the Moral Force of Law / Cheryl Misak -- William James on Justice and the Sacredness of Individuality / David Rondel

Pragmatism and Justice

'Pragmatism and Justice' is an interdisciplinary volume of new and seminal essays by political philosophers, social theorists, and scholars of pragmatism which provides a comprehensive introduction and lasting resource for scholars of pragmatist thought and questions of justice

This book offers a fresh perspective on Richard Rorty by situating his work in the arena of political theory. Reinterpreting Rorty's much-maligned antirepresentationalism as a Romantic affirmation of the power of imaginative writing, Voparil firmly grounds Rorty in an American tradition that includes not only James and Dewey, but Emerson, Whitman, and James Baldwin, and initiates an overdue reassessment of this important thinker's value to the political discourse of the 21st century.

"In the last sentence of a posthumously published article, Richard Rorty wrote: "...individual men and women are more fully human when their memories are amply stocked with verses". Equally, we might say that they are more humane and wide-ranging thinkers when their minds are amply stocked with Rorty's subtle thoughts. We should be grateful for the editors of this anthology for giving us so many." Philip Kitcher, Columbia University "Pragmatist," "historicist," "literary," "anti-analytical," "postmodernist," "neo-liberal," "humanist," "ethnocentric" ù all these (and many other) terms have been applied to Richard Rorty, both as compliments and as insults. This careful selection from his writings, along with Christopher Voparil's excellent introduction, explains why. It charts Rorty's many philosophical twists and turns and it illuminates the intellectual and political commitments that provide his thinking with a deep continuity. And it brings back, for a broad audience, Rorty's characteristic voice: both simple and sophisticated, witty and passionate, light-handed and erudite, controversial and accommodating, detailed and sweeping, critical and hopeful ù above all, unmistakably individual and deeply missed." Alexander Nehamas, Princeton University "The Rorty Reader is a remarkable editorial accomplishment. By bringing together a wide variety of Richard Rorty's controversial and yet inspiring writings, Bernstein and Voparil provide an excellent introduction to this important thinker. The addition, their own insightful introductory chapter, makes the collection essential reading for everyone who wants to gain a better understanding of not just the significance of Rorty's philosophical contribution, but that of modern thought in general." Alan Malachowski, University of Stellenbosch The Rorty Reader represents the first comprehensive collection of the writings of Richard Rorty, one of the twentieth century's most influential thinkers, best known for the controversial Philosophy and the Mirror of Nature (1979). Gathering together key essays from over four decades of writings, the volume offers an in-depth introduction to the philosopher's life and prolific body of work. Topics addressed include the continuities and transformations that span Rorty's early training in the history of philosophy, his engagement with the analytic tradition, and the 1979 publication that brought him international renown. Particular attention is devoted to his later political writings, including his turn to literature as the vehicle of moral reflection most suitable to democratic life, and his embrace of philosophy as cultural politics. With selections from The Linguistic Turn (1967), Philosophy and the Mirror of Nature (1979), Contingency, Irony, and Solidarity (1989), Achieving Our Country (1998), and his four volumes of philosophical papers, including Philosophy as Cultural Politics (2007), as well as in-depth interviews and revealing autobiographical pieces, The Rorty Reader offers a compelling and representative view of Rorty's relationship with American pragmatism and the overall intellectual trajectory of his philosophical and political thought. Christopher J. Voparil is on the Graduate Faculty of Union Institute & University in Cincinnati, OH, where he teaches philosophy and political theory. He is the author of Richard Rorty: Politics and Vision (2006), and has published articles in Contemporary Pragmatism, Journal of Speculative Philosophy, Philosophy and Social Criticism, and Education and Culture. He is also the current Secretary of the Society for the Advancement of American Philosophy. Richard J. Bernstein is Vera List Professor of Philosophy at the New School for Social Research, New York. His most recent book is The Pragmatic Turn (Polity, 2010).

Christopher J. Voparil

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