Pragmatics and Semantics
A variety of contemporary philosophical theories of pragmatics concentrate on semantics. Brandom, for example is a focus on the meaning of words (albeit from a pragmatic perspective).
Others take an approach that is more holistic to pragmatics, such as relevance theory, which aims to explore how an utterance is understood by the hearer. However, this approach tends to neglect other elements of pragmatism, such as epistemic debates over truth.
What is pragmatism?
Pragmatism is a philosophical perspective that offers a viable alternative to continental philosophy and analytic philosophy. Charles Sanders Peirce conceived the concept, and William James extended it. Later, Josiah Royce developed the philosophy. It had a significant impact on areas of inquiry that span from theology to philosophy of science however, it also found a place within the philosophy of ethics, politics, aesthetics, philosophy of language and social theory. The pragmatist tradition continues develop.
The underlying principle of classical pragmatism is the pragmatic maxim, a rule for defining the meaning of hypotheses through exploring their 'practical implications' - their implications for specific situations. This is the basis for an epistemological view that is a form of 'inquiry epistemology' based on inquiry, and an anti Cartesian explanation of the rules that govern inquiry. Early pragmatists were divided over whether pragmatism was a scientific philosophy that was based on an ethos of truth (following Peirce) or a broad alethic pluralitism (James and Dewey).
A major concern for philosophers of the pragmatist tradition is understanding knowledge. Rorty is one of the pragmatists who is skeptical of any theories of knowledge that are built on "immediate experiences". Others, like Peirce and James, are sceptical of the theory of correspondence that claims to be true, according to which true beliefs are those that reflect reality in a 'correct' way.
Other issues in pragmatism include the relationship between beliefs and reality as well as the nature of human rationality, the importance of virtues and values and the nature of life. Pragmatists have also developed a wide range of methods and pragmatickr ideas in fields like semiotics and philosophy of language, philosophy of religion and ethics, philosophy of science and theology. Some, such as Peirce and Royce are epistemological relativists. However, others contend that this kind of relativity is a serious misguided idea. The 20th century was marked by a revival of interest in classical pragmatics. This led to a myriad of new developments. These include the concept of a "near-side" pragmatics that is focused on the resolution of ambiguity indexicals, demonstratives, and anaphors. There is also a "far-side" pragmatics which analyzes the semantics in discourses.
What is the connection between what is said and what happens?
Semantics and Pragmatics are often seen as being at opposite ends of the continuum with semantics on the close side and pragmatics on the other side. Carston for instance, argues that contemporary pragmatics has at least three major lines: those who see it as a philosophy in the vein of Grice and those who concentrate on its interaction with grammar, and those who are concerned with utterance interpretation. Near-side pragmatics is believed to encompass issues such as the clarification of ambiguity or vagueness, reference to proper names, indexicals, demonstratives, anaphors, and presupposition. It is also believed to encompass some issues involving definite descriptions.
What is the relationship between pragmatics and semantics?
Pragmatics is the study of meaning within the context of language. It is a subset of linguistics and looks at the way people employ words to convey various meanings. It is often compared to semantics, which examines the literal meaning of words within a sentence or chunk of speech.
The relationship between semantics and pragmatism is complex. The main distinction is that pragmatics considers other factors than the literal meaning of words, like the intended meaning and the context in which the word was made. This allows for a more nuanced understanding of the meaning behind an utterance. Semantics is also limited to the relationship between words, whereas pragmatics is more concerned with the relationships between interlocutors (people who are engaged in a conversation) and their contextual aspects.
In recent years, neopragmatism has focused heavily on the philosophy of language and metaphilosophy. It has left behind the metaphysics and value theories of classical pragmatism. Neopragmatists are working on developing metaethics that is based on the ideas of classical pragmatism about pragmatics and experience.
Classical pragmatism was initially developed by Charles Sanders Peirce and William James. Both were influential thinkers who wrote numerous books. Their works are still well-read today.
Although pragmatism offers an alternative to the analytic and continental philosophical mainstream, it is not without critics. For example some philosophers have argued that pragmatism is simply a form of deconstructionism and is not truly an entirely new philosophical concept.
In addition to these critics, the pragmatism of the past was challenged by scientific and technical developments. For example, pragmatists have struggled to reconcile their views on science with the development of evolutionary theory, which was developed by a non-pragmatist, Richard Dawkins.
Despite these challenges, pragmatic method continues to gain global popularity. It is a third option to continental and analytic philosophy traditions, and has a wide range of practical application. It is a rapidly growing field of inquiry. Many schools of thought have evolved and incorporated aspects of pragmatism within their own philosophy. If you're looking to learn more about pragmatism or using it in your day-to-day life, there are plenty of sources available.