Dewey, John - Pragmatism

John Dewey – Pragmatism

John Dewey was one of the major exponents of the philosophical current of American Pragmatism, also called Strumentalism. According to this conception, intelligence is an instrument of action, since it is capable of solving interaction problems between man and the context Environment in which it operates. Knowledge is manifested as a form of control of the relationship between man and the environment. Ideas are the tools that man uses to deal with and solve problems. The truth value of an idea connects to a set of operations according to which a particular problem can be resolved or not. Instead, experience is the set of events happening in nature and, as a result, to man. Experience is realized as interaction and transaction, that is, exchange between organism and environment, between knowledge and action. Science is the highest form of rational control of our active relationship with the world. Values are not detached from nature but are qualities specific to certain events. De facto values distinguish the values of law (linked to desirable goods as reasonable). It is not possible to separate morality as the theory of ends by the existence of the means that are necessary to implement them. According to pragmatic conception, art is also a value and falls within the same theory as the moral assessment. As human production, art is useful as well as beautiful. Democracy is the best form of society, it is a guarantee of personal and social development, respect for individuals, and adaptability to social needs.