Pragmatism, Critique, Judgment: Essays for Richard J. Bernstein [Paperback]

Seyla Benhabib (Editor), Nancy Fraser (Editor)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0262524279 | ISBN-13: 978-0262524278 | Publication Date: September 3, 2004

The work of Richard J. Bernstein has achieved a groundbreaking synthesis of the analytical and continental modes of thought. Countering the highly technical metaphysical and epistemological puzzles of analytic philosophy in the early 1960s, Bernstein offered a model of philosophy in a democratic society as the work of the engaged public intellectual. Working within the tradition of American pragmatism, he also changed that tradition by opening it to the international intellectual currents of phenomenology, deconstructionism, and critical theory. These essays by leading philosophers and social thinkers pay tribute to Bernstein and reflect the themes that have engaged him throughout his career.Pragmatism, Critique, Judgment opens with a group of essays that examine the place of philosophy in a democratic society; included in this section are Richard Rorty's exploration of the legacy of American pragmatism and Jürgen Habermas's reconsideration of ethics in philosophy. The essays in the second section examine postpositivist social critique and include Jacques Derrida's consideration of the philosophical paradoxes of the death penalty. The third group of essays considers the theme of radical evil, and includes discussions of Bernstein's nuanced reading of Hannah Arendt. The book ends with a biographical essay based in part on a series of conversations with Bernstein himself.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"As we plunge ever more rapidly into the brave new cyberworld awaiting us in the twenty-first century, it is unclear if we are becoming prosthetic gods, as Freud famously prophesied, or prosthetic devils. This scintillating collection, featuring essays from many of our leading cultural critics, provides plenty of fodder for both conclusions."--Martin Jay, Sidney Hellman Ehrman Professor of History, University of California, Berkeley

From the Inside Flap

"Throughout his long and distinguished career, Dick Bernstein has been the mediating angel of contemporary philosophy, facilitating productive conversations among pragmatists from America, critical theorists and hermeneuticians from Germany, and poststructuralists from France. It is only fitting that many of the most prominent exponents of those traditions honor him with this scintillating collection of essays, which testify to his enduring impact on 21st-century thought."
--Martin Jay, Sidney Hellman Ehrman Professor of History, University of California, Berkeley

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: The MIT Press (September 3, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0262524279
• ISBN-13: 978-0262524278
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,297,595 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)