Richard Rorty
American philosopher who argued for pragmatism as an alternative to both analytic and continental philosophy. Philosophy and the Mirror of Nature demolished the idea that philosophy's task is to represent reality accurately. Contingency, Irony, and Solidarity proposed an anti-foundationalist liberal politics.
Works
- Philosophy and the Mirror of NatureRorty's critique of Western epistemology, arguing philosophy should abandon mirrors and embrace pragmatism
- Contingency, Irony, and SolidarityRorty's pragmatist ethics arguing that solidarity and imagination matter more than objective truth
- Consequences of PragmatismEssays on consequences of pragmatism, defending it against charges of relativism and irresponsibility
- Achieving Our CountryRorty's argument that American progressivism requires utopian vision and national self-deception about ideals
- Truth and ProgressEssays on pragmatism, truth-seeking, and progress in epistemology and philosophy of language