Experience, Interpretation, and Community: Themes in John E. Smith’s Reconstruction of Philosophy
Editor: Vincent M. Colapietro
Date Of Publication: Dec 2011
Isbn13: 978-1-4438-3366-0
Isbn: 1-4438-3366-5
No philosopher in the second half of the twentieth century or the opening decade of the twenty-first did more to recover the voice of philosophy in the conversation of humankind than John Edwin Smith (1921–2009). From The Social Infinite (1950), his landmark study of Josiah Royce, to “Niebuhr’s Prophetic Voice” (2009), he has shown in compelling detail how philosophical reflection is relevant to contemporary life. Indeed, virtually all of the eventual developments within contemporary philosophy in recent decades worthy of our unqualified support (above all, the acknowledgment of history, the abiding importance of the religious dimension of human experience, the hermeneutic character of all our intellectual understandings, including those of experimental inquirers, the irreducibility of persons, the ubiquity of symbols, and the cutting edge of philosophical critique) were ones to which Smith was committed at the outset of his career. He not only anticipated these developments but also pointed the way forward beyond the stultifying impasses of so much contemporary thought. In particular, his conceptions of subjectivity, symbolization, interpretation, experience and philosophy itself provide invaluable resources for twisting free from our present impasses. The essays in this volume make the salience and implications of Smith’s writings on these and other topics manifest. The authors assembled here bear eloquent witness to the wit of the man no less than the depth of the philosopher from whom they learned how to take up the urgent task of philosophical reflection in a world riven by seemingly intractable conflicts and characterized by mutual misunderstanding. John E. Smith was a widely learned man; he was also a deeply wise one. Hence, it should be no surprise that he aids us in creating ways to address such conflicts and to counter such misunderstanding.

Vincent Colapietro is Liberal Arts Research Professor in the Department of Philosophy at The Pennsylvania State University. His principal area of historical research is classical American thought. He is the author of Peirce’s Approach to the Self as well as editor of Experience, Reason, and God: John E. Smith in Dialogue. Though he has published extensively on such pragmatists as Peirce, James, and Dewey, Colapietro has written on a wide range of other figures, topics, and traditions (including Foucault, Derrida, and Rorty; rationality, psychoanalysis, and jazz; idealism, hermeneutics, and deconstruction).

“At a time when philosophy in America rendered itself irrelevant, John Smith led the revolt to take back its traditional role as wisdom for living. This volume of essays examines his thought and celebrates his achievement. The essays and the fine Introduction by the editor constitute a rich critical assessment of a subtle and persuasive thinker.”

– John Lachs, Centennial Professor of Philosophy, Vanderbilt University

“John E. Smith’s voice was unique among American philosophers. Deeply attached to a vision of philosophy as an integral part of the human experience and deeply distrustful of technical reductionism, his writings and teachings on Dewey, Peirce, James, Whitehead, Royce, Tillich, and many others left indelible marks on his students and colleagues. In this collection of first-rate essays on a wide-range of topics, the spirit and scope of John E. Smith’s philosophy lives on.”

– Seyla Benhabib, Eugene Meyer Professor of Political Science and Philosophy, Yale University

“This remarkable collection of essays honors the late philosopher John E. Smith in multiple ways, its authors supplying insightful comments about his work and legacy, but also extending those insights by thinking with Smith about the issues and thinkers that most preoccupied him. The result is an impressive volume that demands the attention of any scholar who cares about American philosophy, its history and prospects, or about a philosophy of religion that draws primarily upon pragmatist resources. The book is notable for its breadth of vision, as canonical figures like Peirce, James and Dewey, along with more frequently neglected philosophers like Royce, Whitehead and C. I. Lewis, all receive generous consideration here.”

– Michael L. Raposa, Professor of Religious Studies and Philosophy of Religion, Lehigh University; Editor, American Journal of Theology and Philosophy

Price Uk Gbp: 39.99
Price Us Usd: 59.99

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