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William James's Pluralistic Universe, December 20, 2006
This review is from: A Pluralistic Universe (Paperback)
William James is best-known for his development of the American philosophy of pragmatism and for his pioneering work in psychology. But in addition to pragmatism, which he described as a method and as a theory of truth, James expounded a broad philosophical doctrine which he called radical empiricism (pluralism). Radical pluralism, as James explained it, constituted a metaphysical position -- one describing the nature of reality -- rather than a method. In his book, "Pragmatism", James maintained that his commitment to radical empiricism was separate from his commitment to pragmatism; but in the Preface to his book, "The Meaning of Truth", James maintained that the success of the pragmatic account of truth was vital to making radical empiricism prevail.
James's fullest development of the theory of radical empiricism was in his book "A Pluralistic Universe" published in 1908. This book consists of the text of eight lectures James delivered in that year at London and at Harvard. In common with James's other works, "A Pluralistic Universe" attacks the monistic idealism derived from Hegel and followed by many of James's contemporaries in England and the United States, such as his colleague, Josiah Royce. But James goes much further than he had in his earlier writings. He offers a critique of logic, conceptual thinking and what he describes as "intellectualism" in philsophy. He urges a return to immediate experience as the basis for philosophical thinking. He develops a philosophy which is pluralistic and contingent -- which leaves room for chance, surprise, and moral action -- and which is essentially idealistic. The driving force behind the philosophy is spiritual, as James argues for panpsychism, pantheism, a finite god (or gods) and the possibility of growth.
James gives two philosophers a great deal of attention in developing his position. The first is the German thinker Gustav Fechner (Lecture IV in "A Pluralistic Universe"), who developed a theory of earth-soul holding that everything in the universe was alive with mind. Fechner's work became the basis of James's pansychism and of his theory of compounding consciousness -- that mind could grow from one thing to another and that there was an interrelationship between the human mind and the mind of a finite god. The second major influence on "A Pluralistic Universe" was the French philosopher Henri Bergson (Chapter VI). From Bergson, James described his critique of intellectualism and conceptual thinking. James argued that concepts were useful in understanding reality for limited purposes, (here James seems to be downplaying his own pragmatism) but that they ultimately distorted reality. Reality was a flow, a stream, in which one moment glided imperceptibly into the next and arose from a past moment. In this view of perception and reality, James rejected the atomistic, sensationalist view of experience of the British empiricists, describing this view as conceptualist in its own right. His view of consciousness was similar to that of another German philosopher, Edmund Husserl, who admired James greatly.
James best sets out the goal and the heart of his teaching in his opening lecture, "The Types of Philosophic Thinking." In this chapter, he stresses the importance of vision in philosophy -- the presentation of a convincing and inspiring view of life -- and downplays the importance of the arguments that are brought to bear in support of the vision. He also limits carefully the scope of his discussion. James at the outset rejects philosophies of materialism or scientism in favor of a philosophy that teaches that "the intimate and human must surround and underlie the brutal." He dscribes this teaching as the "spiritual" way of thinking.
James next distinguishes between a theistic conception of spiritualism which posits God as a creator separate from the universe and a pantheistic version, which argues that God is immanent as "the indwelling divine rather than the external creator, and of human life as part and parcel of that deep reality." James rejects the theistic position and opts instead for a pantheistic view of spirituality. It is important to see these self-imposed limitations on James's thought and to see as well how close James was to the absolute idealism of his day even when he criticized it severely. Hegel and Royce have, in spite of the criticisms he levelled at them, a large role in James's thought.
In the final lecture of "A Pluralistic Universe" James resumes themes he had raised earlier in "The Varieties of Religious Experience." He argues that accounts of individual religious experience suggest a way of approaching reality broader and more profound than anything that "paganism, naturalism, and legalism pin their faith on and tie their trust to." James argues that "the drift of all the evidence we have seems to me to sweep us very strongly towards the belief in some form of superhuman life with which we may, unknown to ourselves, be co-conscious. We may be in the universe as dogs and cats are in our libraries, seeing the books and hearing the conversation, but having no inkling of the meaning of it all." James distinguishes his position from absolute idealism by working from the bottom up -- from individual, plural consciousness rather than from the top down -- from an abstract, intellectually conceived absolute. He advocates a philosophy of meliorism and activity in which individual persons work to bring the good to pass.
This book, James's last sustained work in philosophy, moves towards its own unique form of idealism and establishes James as a thinker in a large manner. The book seems to me to rest uneasily with his pragmatism at many places. "A Pluralistic Universe" is a provocative and moving work by a major American thinker.
Robin Friedman
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5 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
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The Philosophy of Pluralism., December 8, 2006
This review is from: A Pluralistic Universe (Paperback)
_A Pluralistic Universe_ is a republication of the Hibbert Lectures at Manchester College on the Present Situation in Philosophy, given in 1908 and 1909, by American psychologist and philosopher William James, by University of Nebraska Press. William James (1842-1910) was an important figure in American philosophy and psychology. James is perhaps best known for his writings on psychology (cf. _The Principles of Psychology_ which established the school of functionalism in psychology), his lectures on religious experience (cf. _The Varieties of Religious Experience), and for his advocacy of the philosophy of pragmatism and pluralism (as seen in these lectures and in the work _Pragmatism: A New Name for Some Old Ways of Thinking_, a pragmatism along the same lines as that advocated by the American thinker C. S. Peirce). In these lectures, James writes against those who maintain the reality of the absolute (beginning with Plato and Aristotle and culminating in the philosophy of the absolute idealists) and opposes all intellectualizing in philosophy. In opposition to this, James suggests that the world is not a uni-verse but a multi-verse, in which the human experience of manyness and disconnection is made apparent. This leads James to suggest that philosophy should be both pragmatic and empirical. Pragmatism in philosophy aims to enable man to cope with his own finitude, and according to the theory of pragmatism the value of a truth depends upon its use to the individual who holds it. The empiricism advocated by James argues that whatever is experienceable is real and whatever is real is experienceable.
The first lecture presented by James is entitled "The Types of Philosophical Thinking". Here, James suggests that his age is once again growing philosophical, mentioning the growth of absolute idealism in the spirit of Kant and Hegel in the British universities. James contrasts such monism to his pluralism. James proceeds to define rationalism and empiricism, as well as spiritualism and materialism, and theism and pantheism. James notes the present tendency towards pantheism, making a distinction between the two types of spiritualism: dualism (or theism) and "post-Kantian" monism or "absolute idealism" (or pantheism). To make the distinction between absolute idealism and his pluralism, both of which identify the human substance with the divine substance, James notes that according to pluralism all of reality need not be encapsulated in an "all-form" or totality, but rather it may form an "each-form".
The second lecture presented by James is entitled "Monistic Idealism". James again affirms the contrast between absolute idealism and pluralism (or radical empiricism), noting the distinction between the "all-form" and the "each-form". James then examines the philosophy of F. H. Bradley (writer of the work _Appearance and Reality_ and a philosopher of absolute idealism). James also notes the role of Spinoza in the philosophy of pantheism. James also considers other philosophers such as Lotze, Royce, and McTaggart, and refutes various arguments for monistic idealism. James finally turns his attention to Hegel, the German philosopher of absolute idealism.
The third lecture presented by James is entitled "Hegel and His Method". James considers Hegel's influence and examines his dialectic, as well as apparent paradoxes that derive from it. James considers Hegel's account as involving a form of "vicious intellectualism", and thus as being unsatisfactory. James further distinguishes between the Absolute and God, maintaining that they are in fact two different notions (and that while he denies the reality of the Absolute, he does not deny the existence of God, finding such a proposition useful to his beliefs). (Although it must be said that his account here of God is highly problematic.)
The fourth lecture presented by James is entitled "Concerning Fechner". This lecture is devoted to an exposition of the philosophy of Gustav Theodor Fechner (1801-1887), a German experimental psychologist who did important work in physics, chemistry, and developed the field of psychophysics. James praises Fechner as a philosopher, noting his writings on nature and God in the _Zend-Avesta_, as well as his writings on life after death. James also contrasts Fechner to Hegel, and he maintains that although Fechner was a monist that there is room in his universe for grades of being between man and God. James discusses fully Fechner's theories on nature, God, and the Earth-soul.
The fifth lecture presented by James is entitled "The Compounding of Consciousness". This lecture discusses the idea that states of mind may compound themselves, and references Fechner's philosophy. James maintains that it is necessary to abandon intellectualism in order to treat this problem. James next turns his attention to the philosophy of Bergson, which he also praises.
The sixth lecture presented by James is entitled "Bergson and His Critique of Intellectualism". This lecture is devoted to the philosophy of French philosopher Henri Bergson (1859-1941), perhaps most famous as the writer of _Creative Evolution_. James examines Bergson's treatment of the problem of Achilles and the tortoise (the paradox of Zeno). James also examines Bergson's rejection of intellectualism.
The seventh lecture presented by James is entitled "The Continuity of Experience". James considers Green's critique of Sensationalism, as well as the nature of relations. James also maintains that intellectualism must be firmly renounced. James includes some remarks on the alleged difference between the Absolute (which he rejects) and the biblical God (which he accepts), making reference to Fechner's conception of God as well. James also considers some arguments of Bradley.
The eighth lecture presented by James is the "Conclusion". It mentions religious experience, God as a finite being (a problematical understanding), empiricism as opposed to rationalism, and the contrast between monism and pluralism. James maintains that a "faith-ladder" is needed as part of the "will to believe".
This book also includes some notes and three appendices: "The Thing and Its Relations", "The Experience of Activity", and "On the Notion of Reality as Changing".
These lectures are important for setting out the pluralistic philosophy of William James. Ultimately however, such pluralism leads to relativism in its denial of the absolute, and thus must be rejected. Nevertheless, this book makes an important case for this philosophy and thus must be recognized as such. William James played an important role in the development of much of our understanding of psychology, mysticism, and religious experience, and this book introduces his philosophy through his lectures.
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