The Course:
PHL 211: American Philosophy

Entertainment.

Fashion.

Sports.

Technology.

Americans’ contributions to the West are fairly obvious to most college students, but students enrolled in Dr. Bill Meyer’s PHL 211: American Philosophy now know to add one more noun to the list: philosophy.

Specifically, pragmatism.

“America’s most noteworthy contribution to the history of philosophy is ‘pragmatism,’ which is a philosophical method or approach developed in the late 19th and early 20th century by Charles Sanders Peirce, William James and John Dewey,” reads Meyer’s course description for this spring.

On Meyer’s syllabus are numerous reading assignments, including Peirce’s paper, “How to Make Our Ideas Clear,” James’ “The Moral Philosopher and the Moral Life” and Dewey’s “Education as Growth.” The text is challenging for most students – upperclassmen and philosophy majors included – but the struggle is worth it.

“Ultimately, I hope this course encourages students to become more thoughtful citizens and members of a community who don’t just simply accept things without thinking about them.”

Dr. Bill Meyer

“I want students to grapple with the text and think about the question(s) I’ve assigned,” explained the associate professor of philosophy and religion. “We read portions aloud in class, then unpack and discuss them.”

Meyer sets the tone of the course early with this question: “Is something useful because it’s true, or do we call something true because it’s useful?” From there, students begin to explore the world through a pragmatist’s eye.

It’s often not an entirely new view, as the majority of the students taking the course have grown up in the United States and in a culture shaped by pragmatic decision-makers and causes.

“Pragmatism seeks to be practical,” Meyer explained. “It moves away from philosophical abstraction toward more concrete experiences. This philosophy emphasizes experience – reason reflecting on experience – and focuses on how things work.

“That’s not unlike the American spirit,” the professor points out. “Making things work, being practical, is thought to be very American.”

In discussions, students draw lines between other tenets of pragmatism and American culture and values: an emphasis on community and the community’s ultimate ability to come to a truth, a receptiveness to new ideas based on new evidence, an openness to possibilities and chance, a democratic approach to governance and problem-solving.

Pragmatists’ definitions of beauty, their attitudes toward religion and their views of nature are also topics of discussion.

“Pragmatists also do a nice job of explaining how people receive – and then respond to – arguments and ideas,” Meyer said, adding that many other philosophies aren’t concerned with the myriad of factors involved in how people come to believe in or doubt something.

But does he believe in the value of offering PHL211 for students?

Absolutely.

“I hope that through this course, students gain an understanding of how pragmatism has contributed to Western ideas and culture, and I also want them to think more critically, more reflectively about the ideas presented,” Meyer said. “Ultimately, I hope this course encourages students to become more thoughtful citizens and members of a community who don’t just simply accept things without thinking about them.”

The American pragmatists give his students a framework within which they can answer some of the bigger questions of life, the professor added.

“They can look at everyday tasks, the existential dimensions of life and how they relate to each other,” Meyer said.