This essay is, in the main, a presentation of Dewey's social and political philosophy, with particular attention being given to his theory of the origin and nature of the state and to his recommendations for a programme of social reconstruction. As Dewey relies on the use of intelligence for conscious intervention within the social process and for the purposive control of social change, the first chapter of this essay is given to an exposition of Dewey's version of the pragmatic method, Instrumentalism. The major influences which operated to shape Dewey's methodological approach to philosophic problems are the following: (1) the rise of American industry: the divorce of production from hand-tool methods and the introduction of technology and mass manufacturing techniques; (2) the emergence of Pragmatism as a distinctive American philosophy; (3) the rising influence of the biological sciences; (4) the contemplative character of classic philosophy. These influences form the matrix out of which Dewey's general philosophic outlook emerged; an outlook in which thinking is shifted from the contemplative to the practical, and which is ordered by the principle that thinking is instrumental to a control of the environment. Consistent with his methodology, Dewey places his theory of the emergence, existence and functioning of the state on an empirical base. Causal agency theories of the state are rejected; a theory of social organization must start with what is observable, human behaviour. The hypostatized "'Individual" and "Society" are dissolved by a psychology of social behaviourism which holds that the individual is an emergent from a group matrix and his behaviour as an individual Is explainable only by reference to the group. Dewey's social theory begins, therefore, with the facts that human beings exist and act within some kind of social grouping and that the consequences of acting within an association are perceived by the Individuals comprising it. The perception of consequences is the keystone of Dewey's theory. In Dewey's view the fact that consequences are perceived gives rise to the problem of controlling certain consequences, and to the correlative problem of providing the apparatus for regulating actions to attain specified and predetermined consequences. Dewey distinguishes two kinds of actions (or transactions, in Dewey's terminology): those whose consequences are direct and confined to the group within which the actions take place are defined as private; but actions which have effects outside of the group and generate indirect consequences are classified as public. The need to control actions affecting the welfare of those not directly involved in the transactions brings into existence a special social group which Dewey calls A Public. This social entity takes on political form, It becomes a political state, when officials or representatives are appointed or elected and the organize the Public to care for the common interest generated by the indirect consequences of transactions. The formation of states in a continuing, experimental process; as the conditions of social life change so does the need for new forms of political organization. Finally, democracy, in Dewey's theory, is a form of government arising out of a specified practice in selecting officials and regulating their conduct as officials. Dewey's social theory implies the direction of society by ideas and by knowledge. It is Dewey's general thesis, therefore, that the method of experimental social inquiry is the most effective means for a community organized as a political state to make satisfactory adaptations to a changing material, intellectual and moral culture and, at the same time, allowing maximum freedom to the individual for the development of his capacities and potentialities. Recognizing that men are ruled by habit and that they cling to long established beliefs, Dewey saw the persistence of the liberal tradition as the means for carrying the experimental methodology into the arena of social and political affairs. But before it could serve this purpose, liberalism had to be reconstructed. In this reconstruction Dewey saw no need to modify the ends of liberalism, but he points out that if they are to play a guiding role in contemporary life liberalism must abandon its atomistic psychology and the correlative doctrines of individualism and laissez-faire and adopt the ideas and methods of an experimental social philosophy. The immediate problematic situation which prompted Dewey to advocate an experimental method of social inquiry operating through a renascent liberalism was the lack of integration in contemporary social life manifested by (1) the fragmentation of society into a multiplicity of changing publics with differing needs and demands, and (2) the apparent absence of a public controlling and directing the apparatus of government. Dewey argues that the impact of science on society has been so traumatic that traditional political methods are incapable of dealing with the problems which have been created. However, he does not specify what the alternative methods are, but only commits himself to identifying the conditions which must prevail if the Great Community and a democratically organized Public are to emerge. These conditions are absolute freedom of social inquiry and the widest possible distribution of its conclusions. Given the foregoing conditions, the state will become effectively the instrument of the Public. / Arts, Faculty of / Philosophy, Department of / Graduate

This study aims to reconceive the meaning of leisure in school using John Dewey’s theory of education. Though the English word “school” and the Greek word “scholé,” which means leisure, are etymologically related, it is almost impossible to find any relationship between them in contemporary schools. Posed differently, for modern people school is not a place of leisure any more. Modern people understand leisure as a time not to work, as an escape from work. However, for the ancients leisure was a very sacred activity through which they could find their true identity. Therefore, in considering the original meaning of the term leisure, reviving leisure in school means to make a classroom sacred. For Dewey, the necessity for the teacher to provide an appropriate educational environment for the development of a student’s potential is no less sacred than the duties of a priest. This kind of inquiry can help contemporary educators revitalize the deepest meanings in the project of education.

Many of the problems in dominant Western education and philosophy can be connected to various dualisms, in particular reason/emotion, reason/imagination, reason/experience, mind/body, subject/object, individual/community, abstract/concrete, theory/practice and male/female dualisms. These pairs are considered opposites, with the attributes on the left supposedly superior to their dualistic partners on the right. While those attributes on the left, such as mind and reason, are traditionally associated with knowledge, autonomy, citizenship and learning, the attributes on the right, such as emotion and experience, are traditionally thought to be opposed to knowledge, autonomy, citizenship and learning. Drawing on the philosophies of John Dewey and various feminist philosophers, I will argue that the attributes that make up each of these dualistic pairs are not opposed but are actually interdependent and interconnected. For example, I will argue that all thinking and learning involves reason, experience, emotion and imagination interacting with one and other. Neither of these attributes or functions is complete or fully functional without the others. Since mainstream Western pedagogies incorporate such dualisms they are unable to fully facilitate the thinking skills, attributes, dispositions and understandings necessary for autonomy, democratic citizenship and leading a meaningful life. It will be shown that Philosophy for Children (P4C) has the potential to overcome many of the problems with mainstream education, including many gender equity problems, because it is based on Dewey???s philosophical ideals, which reconstruct many of these dualisms. An analysis of the ideals of truth, meaning, community, self, autonomy, democracy, thinking, emotion and imagination assumed by P4C will show how it reconstructs various dualisms and overcomes many problems with traditional schooling. However, it will also be shown that P4C fails to reconstruct the undesirable theory/practice dualism because it doesn???t require students to test and apply their ideas in the real world. This is even though many P4C theorists, such as Matthew Lipman, accept Dewey???s claim that all thinking and learning involve such practicality. Thus, I will reconstruct the P4C pedagogy by integrating it with a Deweyian type of service learning that I call social reconstruction learning. Social reconstruction learning involves students engaging in P4C style communities of inquiry with members of their community in order to reconstruct real social problems. Such a Practical P4C pedagogy can better facilitate reflective thinking, autonomy, active citizenship and meaningfulness.

Many of the problems in dominant Western education and philosophy can be connected to various dualisms, in particular reason/emotion, reason/imagination, reason/experience, mind/body, subject/object, individual/community, abstract/concrete, theory/practice and male/female dualisms. These pairs are considered opposites, with the attributes on the left supposedly superior to their dualistic partners on the right. While those attributes on the left, such as mind and reason, are traditionally associated with knowledge, autonomy, citizenship and learning, the attributes on the right, such as emotion and experience, are traditionally thought to be opposed to knowledge, autonomy, citizenship and learning. Drawing on the philosophies of John Dewey and various feminist philosophers, I will argue that the attributes that make up each of these dualistic pairs are not opposed but are actually interdependent and interconnected. For example, I will argue that all thinking and learning involves reason, experience, emotion and imagination interacting with one and other. Neither of these attributes or functions is complete or fully functional without the others. Since mainstream Western pedagogies incorporate such dualisms they are unable to fully facilitate the thinking skills, attributes, dispositions and understandings necessary for autonomy, democratic citizenship and leading a meaningful life. It will be shown that Philosophy for Children (P4C) has the potential to overcome many of the problems with mainstream education, including many gender equity problems, because it is based on Dewey???s philosophical ideals, which reconstruct many of these dualisms. An analysis of the ideals of truth, meaning, community, self, autonomy, democracy, thinking, emotion and imagination assumed by P4C will show how it reconstructs various dualisms and overcomes many problems with traditional schooling. However, it will also be shown that P4C fails to reconstruct the undesirable theory/practice dualism because it doesn???t require students to test and apply their ideas in the real world. This is even though many P4C theorists, such as Matthew Lipman, accept Dewey???s claim that all thinking and learning involve such practicality. Thus, I will reconstruct the P4C pedagogy by integrating it with a Deweyian type of service learning that I call social reconstruction learning. Social reconstruction learning involves students engaging in P4C style communities of inquiry with members of their community in order to reconstruct real social problems. Such a Practical P4C pedagogy can better facilitate reflective thinking, autonomy, active citizenship and meaningfulness.

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Protocole d'entente entre l'Université Laval et l'Université de Sherbrooke / D’emblée, cette thèse s’est donnée une orientation générale soucieuse de penser ensemble les dimensions théorique et pratique de l’éthique. Dans cette perspective, le pragmatisme de John Dewey s’est vite imposé comme cadre conceptuel permettant de lui fournir des assises épistémologiques rigoureuses tout en ouvrant la voie au développement d’outils pratiques visant la résolution de problèmes concrets. Ainsi, savoir et savoir-faire pourraient se nourrir mutuellement. S’inscrivant dans la foulée de la théorie de l’évolution de Darwin, la philosophie de Dewey adopte un naturalisme rejetant tout dualisme opposant le corps et la pensée. L’expérience humaine est abordée dans sa continuité avec l’environnement naturel et social qui est le sien. Langage, idées et théories peuvent dès lors être conçus comme autant d’instruments contribuant à améliorer notre adaptation aux changements constants de cet environnement. Produites dans l’expérience et validées par elle, si précieuses soient-elles, nos connaissances générales seraient d’une utilité limitée sans les ressources cognitives d’une être capable de raisonner dans des contextes chaque fois uniques. Sur le plan éthique, une éducation se limitant à l’apprentissage de grands principes moraux ne suffira donc pas à orienter adéquatement la conduite humaine. Son rôle étant d’habiliter à trouver les solutions les mieux adaptées à des problèmes spécifiques, l’éducation morale doit d’abord viser le développement d’habiletés intellectuelles contribuant à l’autonomie de chacun et de chacune. Une approche réflexive de l’éthique s’impose donc selon Dewey, mais cela sans toutefois renier l’importance des normes et des habitudes, incluant les dispositions morales. Pour lui, le travail de reconstruction ou d’amélioration de la théorie éthique doit s’abreuver à plusieurs sources. D’abord des connaissances que nous pouvons dégager à même notre propre vie morale. Ensuite, des théories éthiques dont nous disposons déjà pour jeter un éclairage utile sur nos pratiques. Enfin, de toutes les disciplines susceptibles de contribuer à une meilleure compréhension de la conduite humaine. En développant une conception naturaliste de la logique accompagnée d’une théorie de l’enquête fournissant les grandes étapes d’une méthode de résolution de problèmes, Dewey nous offre la possibilité de rapprocher le savoir du général du savoir-faire du singulier. Sur le plan épistémologique, cette thèse débouche sur une conception probabiliste de l’éthique. Sans prétendre à quelque certitude, la pensée réfléchie contribue à augmenter la probabilité que l’agent moral contrôle son action de manière à produire de meilleurs résultats qu’en s’en remettant exclusivement à ses impulsions, à ses désirs, à ses habitudes ou aux normes en vigueur. Sur le plan pratique, elle mène à l’hypothèse que l’explicitation des valeurs en tension dans une situation problématique contribue à augmenter la qualité d’une délibération et de la décision qui en résultera. Cela s’accompagne aussi de la nécessité de proportionner la délibération à l’importance des enjeux identifiés à même le processus d’enquête. John Dewey a produit une théorie de la valuation qu’il disait inachevée et qui devait selon lui être « développée et perfectionnée » par un usage approprié encore inexistant. Cette thèse défend l’idée que l’explicitation des valeurs pourrait bien être cet usage approprié permettant de mieux résoudre nos problèmes éthiques pratiques. Nous pensons donc qu’elle peut contribuer, comme le souhaitait Dewey, au « développement d’une théorie de valuation comme instrument efficace ». C’est ainsi que nous aurons atteint notre objectif d’un enrichissent mutuel de la théorie et de la pratique de l’éthique. / The general approach at the start of this thesis was to merge the theoretical and practical aspects of ethics. From this perspective, John Dewey’s pragmatism rapidly became the conceptual framework on which to base solid and rigorous epistemological foundations leading to the development of practical tools to resolve concrete problems. Knowledge and know-how could therefore benefit from true synergy. Along the same lines as Darwin’s Theory of Evolution, Dewey’s philosophy adopts a naturalistic posture rejecting any dualism opposing mind and body. The human experience is considered in its continuity within its natural and social environment. Language, ideas and theories can therefore be viewed as many instruments contributing to improving our adaptation to constant changes in this environment. Broad knowledge is gained, built and validated by experience. But however valuable this knowledge may be, it would be of limited usefulness without the cognitive resources of the human capacity to reason in ever unique situations. From an ethical point of view, education limited to the learning of major moral founding principles would then be insufficient to adequately guide human conduct. Moral education with its role of providing means to better resolve specific problems, must first aim to fully develop intellectual abilities to enable individual autonomy. Therefore, from Dewey’s point of view, a reflexive approach to ethics is necessary without however denying the importance of norms and habits, including moral disposition. Dewey views the reconstruction or the improvement of the theory of ethics to be fuelled by different sources: from the knowledge we gain from leading our own moral life, from existing ethical theories we can draw from to help us shed light on our own practices and finally, from all disciplines that may contribute to a better understanding of human conduct. In developing a naturalistic concept on logic supported by an inquiry theory outlining the global steps of a problem-solving methodology, Dewey provides the opportunity to close the distance between broad knowledge and specific know-how. From an epistemological point of view, this thesis launches a probabilistic concept of ethics. Without claiming to any certainties, reflective thought contributes to increasing the probability that moral agent can control their actions for better results rather than base them only on impulse, desire, habit or standard conventions. From a practical point of view, this leads us to hypothesize that the explicitation of conflictual values within a problem situation contributes to increasing the quality of deliberation and, from there, to increasing the probability that the decision resulting from it will yield better results. This also entails that the deliberation be proportionate to the importance of issues identified within the inquiry process itself. John Dewey elaborated a theory of valuation which he qualified as incomplete and, according to him, to be “developed and perfected” through an appropriate but still inexistent use. This thesis advances that explicitation of values may be this appropriate use which can help resolve concrete ethical problems. We believe this notion may contribute, as Dewey wished, to the “development of a theory of valuation as an effective instrumentality”, thus achieving our goal of mutual enrichment of both theory and practice of ethics.

My study looks at the influence that Matthew Arnold, 19th century English poet and literary critic, had on John Dewey, American pragmatist and educational philosopher. While the influence of Arnold on Dewey was more pervasive than I had expected, my real purpose in writing this dissertation was to discover a middle ground between the educational philosophies the two men espoused and to construe a fuller approach to a pluralistic educational philosophy. I have looked at four aspects of mind that draw Arnold and Dewey into close correspondence. The first aspect I have called the tentacled mind from Dewey's favored metaphor of the mind as having tentacles that reach out and encounter directly the physical world. This aspect of mind allows me to look at the common use that both Arnold and Dewey made of the term "experience." The second aspect of mind I call the critical mind. I have explored this aspect of mind by looking at a brief history of English literary criticism from Dryden to Stanley Fish. The third aspect of mind is the intentional mind which deals with the rhetorical-hermeneutic relationship of mind to the intentionality of other voices and to its own intentionality. This aspect crosses into reader response theory, but I have found within it results that differ significantly from traditional reader-response theory. The final aspect of mind I have called reflective-response. In both Arnold and Dewey the reflective aspects of the mind differ widely from more contemplative conceptions of the mind in a reflective state; most notably for both Arnold and Dewey the reflective mind is never passive. I believe that when these four aspects of mind are brought together they amount to a truly pluralistic educational philosophy. In the course of my argument I have, as well, identified a need to rehabilitate both the concept of intentionality and that of authority. / text

In the ongoing critical discourse about education, the status of aesthetics has always played second fiddle to the main arguments about what constitutes a relevant curriculum. Aesthetics is seen by many educators as a frivolous experience---at best a weak substitute for serious learning. This is the issue that Dewey addressed in his philosophy of aesthetics, and this is also where my focus lies in this thesis. / The thesis is a personal and theoretical examination of John Dewey's aesthetic philosophy as it is principally expressed in Art as Experience . In exploring the personal implications of the aesthetic experience, the thesis investigates Dewey's argument that the aesthetic is an intrinsic part of life. It demonstrates Dewey's emphasis on the productive presence of the aesthetic in the cultural life of society.

Made available in DSpace on 2015-03-03T11:52:26Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2014-08-14Bitstream added on 2015-03-03T12:07:15Z : No. of bitstreams: 1 000809374.pdf: 2425247 bytes, checksum: 856f717d42ca2d3d3d63410f271849a8 (MD5) / O movimento de revisão da teoria aristotélica desencadeado no século XX afastou Aristóteles de interpretações teológicas até então hegemônicas, permitindoo surgimento de investigações que relacionam a sua filosofia com as ideias de pensadores que o sucederam, como é o caso de John Dewey. Considerando que esse tema ainda requer aprofundamentos, em especial quanto às bases psicológicas que sustentam os dois filósofos, o presente trabalho focaliza o conceito de homem e de desenvolvimento humano nos discursos de Aristóteles e Dewey. Esta investigação utiliza a análise retórica oriunda de Chaïm Perelman, buscando compreender as estratégias argumentativas utilizadas pelos dois autores (definidos como oradores) para persuadir seus leitores (definidos como auditório).Foram examinados os escritos da maturidade de Aristóteles e vários textos de Dewey, a maioria deles elaborados durante o período em que o autor trabalhou em Chicago e Columbia. Os resultados da pesquisa estão organizados em quatro capítulos, sendo o primeiro deles referente às definições aristotélica e deweyana de ser humano; a análise utiliza o conceito de dissociação de noções. O segundo capítulo discorre sobre o processo de formação e desenvolvimento do homem, utilizando para isso a conceituação de metáfora. O terceiro discute o contexto propício à formação e ao desenvolvimento humano, recorrendo à noção de filosofia prática. O último capítulo apresenta a linguagem e os acordos linguísticos como fatores causais da definição de homem e da promoção do desenvolvimento humano. Todos os capítulos discutem a relação entre discurso e auditório em cada um dos filósofos. A conclusão defende que as semelhanças entre Aristóteles e Dewey são mais significativas do que as suas diferenças, especialmente porque ambos adotam concepções contrárias ao transcendentalismo, o que fica evidente em suas teorizações sobre a linguagem ... / The movement to reviewthe Aristotelian theory unleashed in the 20th centurydeviated Aristotle from theological interpretations hitherto hegemonic, allowing the emergenceof investigations that relate his philosophy to the ideas of thinkers who emerged after him, such as John Dewey.Considering that this subject still requires deepening, especially regardingthepsychological foundations that underlie the two philosophers, this paper focuses on the concept of man and human development in the speeches of Aristotle and Dewey. This research uses the rhetorical analysis from ChaïmPerelman, seekingto understand the argumentative strategies used by the two authors (defined as speakers) to persuade their readers (defined asauditorium).Writings of Aristotle’smaturity and several texts from Dewey were examined, most of them developed during the period in which the author worked in Chicago and Columbia. The results from this investigation are organized into four chapters, the first one referring to the Aristotelian and Deweyan definitions of being human; the analysis uses the concept of dissociation of notions. The second chapter talks aboutthe process of formation and development of man, using the conceptof metaphorin order to do it.The third chapter discusses the appropriate context to the human development and formation, usingthe concept of practical philosophy. The final chapter presents the language and linguistic arrangements as causesofthe definition of man and promotion of human development. All chapters discuss the relationship between speech and audience in each of the philosophers.Theconclusion argues that the similarities between Aristotle and Dewey are more meaningful than their differences, especially because both adopt ideas contrary to the transcendentalism, which is clearin their theorizationsabout language. Finally, the paperdiscusses the relevance of this conclusion for the field of education ...

Dissertação (mestrado)—Universidade de Brasília, Instituto de Artes, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Arte, 2016. / Submitted by Fernanda Percia França (fernandafranca@bce.unb.br) on 2016-09-08T19:03:44Z No. of bitstreams: 1 2016_LeandroGuilhermeOliveiradeMenezes.pdf: 1627337 bytes, checksum: c89b7e24221851631d3c392664355304 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Raquel Viana(raquelviana@bce.unb.br) on 2016-11-03T13:18:00Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 2016_LeandroGuilhermeOliveiradeMenezes.pdf: 1627337 bytes, checksum: c89b7e24221851631d3c392664355304 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-11-03T13:18:01Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 2016_LeandroGuilhermeOliveiradeMenezes.pdf: 1627337 bytes, checksum: c89b7e24221851631d3c392664355304 (MD5) / O presente trabalho é fruto de uma reflexão a partir das limitações e possibilidades dos educadores de Artes que compõem o quadro de professores do Distrito Federal na Regional da Samambaia de Ensino. São ainda propostas construções e definições para a experiência, saberes, formação do docente para justamente, adentrar o discurso de educadores que trazem à discussão as experiências e contribuições ao longo de suas carreiras. Esse estudo traz luz a um quadro sintomático de comportamentos, trajetórias semelhantes, possibilitando a formação de um perfil de um educador nesta regional. Para se chegar a essas questões, o estudo aborda o sujeito que sofre a experiência num diálogo entre Jorge Larossa e John Dewey, desencadeado em tipos de experiência num processo de remoldagem do ser humano, ou seja, a partir de suas experiências anteriores, questionar-se e transbordar-se em novos terrenos de experiência. Ao falar desse processo de construção com o meio gerando conhecimento, é apresentada a construção de um saber a partir de Maurice Tardiff e seu processo de formação do saber docente. _________________________________________________________________________________________________ ABSTRACT / This work is the result of reflection from the limitations and possibilities of Arts educators who make up the teaching staff of the Federal District in the Regional Education Fern. It is also proposed constructions and definitions for the experience, knowledge, teacher's training to precisely enter the discourse of educators who bring to the discussion the experiences and contributions throughout their careers. This study brings light to a symptomatic picture of behaviors, similar trajectories, allowing the formation of a profile of an educator in this regional. To get to these questions, the study addresses the subject who suffers experience a dialogue between Jorge Larossa and John Dewey, triggered in types of experience in refolding process of human beings, that is, from their previous experiences, pose questions up and overflow into new land experience. When speaking of that building process with the means generating knowledge, the construction of knowledge from Maurice Tardiff and its formation process of teaching knowledge is presented.