Pragmatics and Semantics
Many of the current philosophical theories of pragmatics concentrate on semantics. For instance, Brandom focuses on linguistic meaning (albeit from a pragmatic perspective).
Others take a more holistic approach to pragmatics, like relevance theory, which aims to understand how an expression is perceived by the listener. This view tends to ignore other aspects of pragmatics such as epistemic discussions about truth.
What is pragmatism?
Pragmatism provides a different perspective to continental philosophy and analytic philosophy. Charles Sanders Peirce conceived it, and William James extended it. Later, Josiah Royce developed the philosophy. It had a profound influence on areas of inquiry from philosophy of theology to philosophy of science, but also ethics and politics, as well as the philosophy of language. The pragmatist tradition continues to develop.
The fundamental premise of classical pragmatism is the pragmatic maxim, a rule for clarifying the significance of hypotheses by investigating their 'practical consequences and their implications for specific situations. This creates an epistemological viewpoint that is a type of 'inquiry epistemology' based on inquiry, and an anti Cartesian explanation of the norms governing inquiry. Early pragmatists, however, were largely divided on the issue of whether pragmatism ought to think of itself as a philosophy of science that focuses on a monism of truth (following Peirce), or a broad-based alethic pluralism (James and pragmatickr Dewey).
One of the major concerns for philosophers of the pragmatist tradition is understanding knowledge. Rorty is one pragmatist who is skeptical of any notions of knowledge that are based on 'immediate experiences'. Others, like Peirce or James are skeptical of the theory of correspondence, which holds that true beliefs are those that accurately represent reality.
Other issues in pragmatism include the relationship between reality and beliefs as well as the nature of human rationality, the role of virtues and values, and the meaning of life. Pragmatists also developed a variety of theories and methods, including those in semiotics and philosophy of language. They also study areas like philosophy of religion, philosophy, science, ethics and theology. Some, such as Peirce and Royce, are epistemological relativists. However, others argue that such relativity is a serious misguided idea. A renewed interest in classical pragmatism during the late 20th century has led to a variety of new developments, such as the 'near-side' pragmatics which is concerned with resolution of confusion and ambiguity, the reference of proper names, indexicals, demonstratives and anaphors and a 'far-side pragmatics that focuses on the semantics of discourses.
What is the connection between what you say and what you do?
Semantics and Pragmatics are often viewed as being on opposite ends of the continuum with semantics on the near side and pragmatics on the other side. Carston for instance claims that modern pragmatics follows at least three main lines: those who view it as a philosophy in the tradition of Grice, those who focus its interaction with grammar, and those who are concerned with the interpretation of utterances. Near-side pragmatics covers questions like the resolution of unclearness and the use of proper names indexicals, demonstratives, anaphoras and presupposition. It is also thought to address some issues that involve specific descriptions.
What is the connection between pragmatics and semantics?
Pragmatics is the study of meaning in the context of language. It is a branch of linguistics that examines the ways people use language to convey different meanings. It is often contrasted to semantics, which focuses on the literal meaning of words within a sentence or broader chunk of conversation.
The relationship between pragmatics, semantics and their interrelationship is a complex one. The major distinction is that pragmatics takes into account other aspects besides literal meanings of words, such as the intended meaning and context in which a statement was made. This gives a more nuanced understanding to be formed of the meaning of a sentence. Semantics is also restricted to the relationship between words, whereas pragmatics is more concerned with the interlocutors' relationships (people who are in an exchange) and their contextual characteristics.
In recent years, neopragmatism has focused heavily on the philosophy of metaphilosophy and language. In this way, it has mostly departed from classical pragmatism's metaphysics and value theory. However, some neopragmatists have been developing an ethics that draws from the pragmatics of classical pragmatism and experience.
Charles Sanders Peirce, William James and others were among the first to introduce classical pragmatics. Both were influential thinkers who wrote numerous books. Their works are widely regarded today.
Although pragmatism can be considered an alternative to the dominant analytic and continental philosophical traditions however, it does not come without its critics. Some philosophers, for example have argued that deconstructionism is not an original philosophical concept and that pragmatism simply represents a form.
In addition to these criticisms, pragmatism has been questioned by technological and scientific advancements. For instance, pragmatists have struggled to reconcile their views on science with the development of evolution theory that was created by Richard Dawkins, a non-pragmatist.
Despite these difficulties, pragmatism continues to grow in popularity worldwide. It is a third option to Continental and analytic philosophical traditions, and it has a variety of practical application. It is a growing field of inquiry that has numerous schools of thought developing and incorporating aspects of pragmatism into their own philosophy. If you are interested in learning more about pragmatism, or applying it in your daily life, there are many sources available.