Democratic experimentalism, growth, and education
Deweyan contributions to political epistemology
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.35305/cf2.vi19.174Keywords:
growth, instrumentalism, pragmatism, political epistemology, cooperative social investigationAbstract
In the field of political epistemology, a key problem is how to balance epistemic commitments to make adequate political decisions with substantive moral commitments. This article proposes to address this problem from the approach of the classical pragmatist John Dewey, given that in his thought it is possible to identify an epistemic argument and a formative argument in favor of democracy. To this end, first, the epistemic argument is reconstructed and the criticisms regarding its alleged instrumental character are analyzed. Second, we reconstruct the central lines of the formative argument and consider both the conditions for the fulfillment of the moral ideal of growth and the educational character of democracy. From here it is argued (i) that the epistemic foundation and the "substantive" foundation are convergent and that the notion of growth acts as a pivot between the two; and (ii) that education in general and formal education in particular act as a sphere of convergence between the two justifications of democracy. This is presented as an element of enormous practical potential for political epistemology and allows us to emphasize -once again- the centrality of education in Dewey's philosophical-political project.
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