Pragmatic Humanism Revisited: An Essay on Making the World a Home (Studies in Humanism and Atheism)

How can we feel at home in this world without clinging to false certainties? This book offers a humanist re-reading of philosophical pragmatism and explores its potentials for a worldview that relies only on human resources. Thinking along with authors like William James and F.C.S. Schiller, it highlights a fundamentally humanist strand of pragmatism aimed at fostering human creativity and transformative action. It is grounded in everyday experience and underlines our responsibility to strive for the better. Ana Honnacker traces perspectives on science, religion, and ethics in the light of a pragmatic understanding of humanism. Furthermore, she suggests how to address the existential challenges we face today. Thus, pragmatic humanism is explored not only as a philosophy for critical minds, but also as a way of life. Front Matter ....Pages i-viii Introduction (Ana Honnacker)....Pages 1-6 Approaching Pragmatic Humanism (Ana Honnacker)....Pages 7-17 Human Inquiry and the Authority of Science (Ana Honnacker)....Pages 19-35 Emancipatory Outlooks on Religion and Faith (Ana Honnacker)....Pages 37-58 Experimental Action and Inclusion: The Ethics of Pragmatic Humanism (Ana Honnacker)....Pages 59-78 Thinking About Last Things: Death, Finitude, and Meaning (Ana Honnacker)....Pages 79-96 Conclusion: Living on Uncertainties—Pragmatic Humanism as a Way of Life (Ana Honnacker)....Pages 97-101 Back Matter ....Pages 103-106