Que pourrait être une éthique démocratique ? Telle est l'interrogation qui donne son relief à la réflexion développée dans cette Éthique de John Dewey et James Hayden Tufts. L'édition de 1932 traduite ici conserve la clarté pédagogique d'un ouvrage conçu, dans sa version originelle de 1908, comme un manuel universitaire, mais elle est enrichie par la prise en compte des questions sociales et politiques surgies au cours des années terribles qui séparent les deux textes, de la Première Guerre mondiale à la crise de 1929. De l'échec des tentatives de moralisation des relations internationales aux défis d'une société livrée aux forces du marché et en proie à l'individualisme, l'actualité des thèmes imposés, de la sorte, par les événements reste la nôtre sous de nouveaux visages.
La contribution de Tufts explore la façon dont chaque société sécrète son dispositif éthique. Dewey rappelle les traits des grandes philosophies morales avant de proposer leur dépassement, qui va de pair avec le dépassement du dualisme entre individu et société. La démocratie, fait-il valoir, a besoin d'une éthique en mesure de répondre aux revendications d'autonomie d'acteurs confrontés à des forces économiques et politiques aveugles.
Une nécessité qui se trouve plus que jamais au coeur de l'espace public.
En août 1936, le monde stupéfait découvre les premiers procès de Moscou. Accusés des pires crimes, certains des principaux dirigeants de la révolution d'Octobre seront exécutés. Pourtant, le principal coupable, celui qui a tout organisé, selon le procureur Vychinski, est absent, chassé d'URSS quelques années plus tôt et privé de sa citoyenneté soviétique. Léon Trotsky, le fondateur de l'Armée rouge, est en exil au Mexique.
Il aurait été, tour à tour et depuis longtemps, un agent de la Gestapo, du Mikado japonais et de l'état-major militaire français. Il aurait été l'organisateur de sabotages et d'assassinats en URSS.
Une commission internationale conduite par le philosophe américain John Dewey va mener une contre-enquête. Elle recueille des témoignages et vérifie la solidité des accusations. En avril?1937, elle se rend à Coyoacán où réside Trotsky pour l'interroger. Le vieux militant bolchevique répond aux questions et revient sur l'histoire de la Révolution russe et son funeste destin, sur sa vie depuis ses premiers engagements politiques, sa rencontre avec Lénine et le déroulement de la révolution d'Octobre.
Il nous livre aussi son témoignage et ses analyses sur la dégénérescence bureaucratique de l'URSS. Il détaille le fonctionnement de l'appareil policier de Staline et le déroulement des procès Moscou. Sous le feu des questions de la commission, il met en pièces les accusations et démontre les invraisemblances des faits allégués.
Trois ans avant son assassinat par un agent de Staline, il nous propose sa part de vérité. Dans ces pages du contre-interrogatoire de la commission, Trotsky nous livre le témoignage vivant d'un acteur de premier plan du déroulement tumultueux de l'Histoire de la première partie du 20e siècle.
Publié en 1938, ce document est resté inédit en français.
Sans doute la synthèse parfaite de la pensée de Dewey qui, ici, se libère du pragmatisme. " Qu'entend-on par expérience ? " - à la lumière d'une praxis repensée, il répond à la question, limite les prérogatives de la philosophie et ouvre un champ illimité à la raison critique. Ce texte fondamental reste fidèle à un objectif de lisibilité chez l'auteur et son traducteur.
Ces dernières années, nos sociétés ont été le théâtre d'un regain en vigueur (et en intolérance) des religions monothéistes, lequel s'est accompagné d'une mise en question de l'évidence de la sécularisation et de la pertinence de la laïcité, accusées d'oppresser les « sensibilités religieuses ». Et tandis que prolifèrent « fake news », « théories du complot » et autres délires de conflits de portée civilisationnelle voire cosmique, la défiance de l'autorité des sciences s'accroit et instaure une certaine désespérance de l'idéal démocratique. Face à cette situation, il est utile de se ressourcer dans les écrits de John Dewey consacrés aux religions et au naturalisme. Si le philosophe américain a pu dire en 1930 qu'il n'a « jamais été capable d'attacher beaucoup d'importance à la religion en tant que problème philosophique », il s'y est souvent intéressé en tant que problème intellectuel, social et politique. Le présent livre rassemble vingt-cinq de ses interventions sur les religions et le naturalisme, couvrant une période allant de 1893 à 1950. En offrant en français l'accès à un pan méconnu de l'oeuvre du philosophe et intellectuel américain, ce recueil aimerait contribuer à un rafraichissement pragmatiste de la critique des religions ; Dewey le montrait, c'est au nom des exigences de l'idéal démocratique qu'il faut critiquer les religions surnaturalistes et promouvoir le naturalisme.
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The School and Society is a highly influential publication that laid the foundation for John Dewey's later work. In the initial publication, Dewey proposes a psychological, social, and political framework for progressive education, including collaborative practical experimentation as the central element of school work. He argues that the progressive approach is both an inevitable product of the Industrial Revolution and a natural fit with the psychology of children. The book had almost immediate popularity and influence, with three printings within its first year, comprising 7,500 copies between them. The first lecture examines the relationship of education and social progress. Dewey argues that, with the coming of the industrial age, many traditional educative processes had been lost. The third lecture takes on the issue of "waste in education" in a somewhat unusual mode. The work was cited by Édouard Claparède who helped shape a progressive éducation nouvelle in Geneva, Switzerland, in the years leading up to the first world war.
A classic in social and political philosophy. In his characteristic and provocative dialectic style, John Dewey clarifies the meaning and implications of such concepts as "the public," "the state," "government," and "political democracy"; distinguishes his a posteriori reasoning from a priori reasoning which, he argues, permeates less meaningful discussions of basic concepts; and repeatedly demonstrates the interrelationships between fact and theory. As in his other writings, Dewey exhibits his strong faith in the potential of human intelligence to solve the public's problems.
"John Dewey, an early 20th Century American philosopher, psychologist, educational theorist saw Social Psychology as much a physical science (with rules and predictive power) as Biology and Chemistry. This project encompasses Part 1 of 4 of his book Human Nature and Conduct.
Dewey's uses the word ""HABIT"" as a specialized catch-all word to describe how a person and his/her objective environment interact. This interaction is the basis for moral judgement. Dewey writes: ""All habits are demands for certain kinds of activity; and they constitute the self." In other places he also asserts that ""Habits are Will."" - Summary by William Jones, Soloist"
"Part 2 describes Dewey's concept of IMPULSES. They encompass the interaction of one's self with the environment. When the environment encounters problems with one's HABITS, Impulses are the motivating, innate forces which prompt one to modify habits and/or modify the environment. ""Nature vs Nurture"" explanations of someone's personality are deceptive and fallacious. This stems from the human inclination to CLASSIFY things - practically everything!
Innate behaviors are a collection of habits which one's culture has solidified as Customs. Most education is not learning but rather training of one's habits to harmonize with local customs. Human nature is plastic, malleable. Customs are, almost by definition, rigid. And, because one's environment is always changing, customs and its supporting habits are continually being tested. Nations disintegrate when their customs grow inflexible.
A MORAL ACT is one whose effects are fine tune and reorganize habits. Thought arises then when habits are hindered and only impulses are active.
The basic motor of human nature and conduct is HABIT, not reason or innate instinctive drives. In Dewey's theories of education, he asserts that education should be leading youth away from society's dysfunctional habits. He decries the fact that our economic theories concentrate on OWNERSHIP of things rather than the ways we USE things.
- Summary by William Jones, Soloist"
"A book written by an American education philosopher in which he proposed "This scientific attitude of mind might, conceivably, be quite irrelevant to teaching children and youth. But this book also represents the conviction that such is not the case; that the native and unspoiled attitude of childhood, marked by ardent curiosity, fertile imagination, and love of experimental inquiry, is near, very near, to the attitude of the scientific mind. If these pages assist any to appreciate this kinship and to consider seriously how its recognition in educational practice would make for individual happiness and the reduction of social waste, ..."
Excerpt From: John Dewey. "How We Think." - Summary by Linda Andrus"
John Dewey, an early 20th Century American philosopher, psychologist, educational theorist. This project encompasses Part 4 of 4 of his book Human Nature and Conduct, An Introduction to Social Psychology, published in 1922. Dewey's uses the words "HABIT" and "Impulse" as a specialized catch-all words to describe how a person and his/her objective environment interact. This interaction is the basis for moral and ethical judgments. Dewey writes: "All habits are demands for certain kinds of activity; and they constitute the self." In other places he also asserts that "Habits are Will." In the third part of the book, Dewey describes how we make ethical judgments on the occasions which call upon the exercise of intelligence, and the relationship among aims, goals, means and ends, and emotions. In this fourth section he ties together the preceding concepts and conclusions Part 4: Conclusion Section I: The Good of Activity Better and worse; morality a process; evolution and progress; optimism; Epicureanism; making others happy. Section II: Morals are Human Humane morals; natural law and morals; place of science. Section III: What is Freedom? Elements in freedom; capacity in action; novel possibilities; force of desire. Section IV: Morality is Social Conscience and responsibility; social pressure and opportunity; exaggeration of blame; importance of social psychology; category of right; the community of religious symbol. Soloist supplementary note: Very important but sometimes overlooked is his concept in Part 3 of the book of "Dramatic Rehearsal" which to me means: when we are deliberating over a course of action, we don't just tote up an arithmetic series of "if I do THIS, then THIS will happen, and then THIS will happen, etc. and weigh out the pluses and minuses" as a Utilitarian would do. No, what we do, says Dewey, is that at every step of divining what the future will hold, we examine how we FEEL about the situation. For example, if we're planning a chess move, we don't think to ourselves merely "if I make THIS move, I'll weaken my king side, but I'll gain a pawn" No, instead we think "if I make THIS move, I'll weaken my king side {Dang it all to hecky darn! }, but I'll gain a pawn {Yaaaay! hoorah! }". The force of our subjective and emotive intensity sway the final decisions.
First published in 1925, this second edition 1929, public domain.
In this brilliant and inspiring book, Prof. Dewey attempts to apply in philosophy the thought which is effective in dealing with any genuine question, from the elaborate problems of science to the practical deliberations of daily life. In his opinion, the break between the two realms is the cause of our modern intellectual perplexities and confusions. He is then led to attack the momentous problem of bridging the gap between the intellectual and moral heritage of civilisation, and the material presented to the speculative mind by science, industry, or even politics, by means of what he calls "the method of empirical naturalism".
In this series of lectures, Dewey presents the metaphysics underlying his influential views on science, ethics, education, and social reform.
Art as Experience by John Dewey (1859-1952), public domain.
Based on John Dewey's lectures on esthetics, delivered as the first William James Lecturer at Harvard in 1932, ''Art as Experience'' has grown to be considered internationally as the most distinguished work ever written by an American on the formal structure and characteristic effects of all the arts: architecture, sculpture, painting, music, and literature.
Le lezioni tenute da John Dewey a Pechino nel 1919-1920, presentate qui per la prima volta in forma completa al pubblico italiano, costituiscono un documento prezioso per gettare luce su uno degli aspetti più intricati e intriganti, ma ancora meno discussi, dell'opera del filosofo americano, ovvero la sua filosofia sociale. Nelle lezioni in Cina, Dewey delinea un nuovo tipo di filosofia ("terza filosofia"), in grado non solo di capire le trasformazioni del presente, ma anche e soprattutto di farvi fronte e provare a orientarle. Per dimostrarsi all'altezza di tale compito, filosofe e filosofi devono allora abbandonare il cielo delle astrazioni concettuali e calarsi nella fitta trama dei conflitti sociali, imparare a decifrare le prospettive dei gruppi subalterni e oppressi, superare sia il desiderio di conservare lo status quo sia l'impulso di creare un ordine socio-politico completamente nuovo. Alla luce di queste considerazioni, anche la teoria politica deweyana, in particolare la sua visione della democrazia, ne risulta rinnovata e arricchita.
In Art as Experience, renowned philosopher and educator John Dewey presents a profound and original exploration of the nature of art, grounding it firmly in the realm of everyday human experience. First published in 1934, this seminal work argues that art is not confined to galleries or elite culture, but is a vital, living part of how we engage with the world.
Dewey redefines aesthetic experience as something that arises naturally from the rhythms of life-our interactions with nature, work, emotion, and community. Art, in his view, is the culmination of experience intensified, shaped, and expressed. Rather than being separate from life, it is deeply embedded in it.
With clarity and philosophical depth, Dewey challenges traditional notions of beauty, creativity, and expression. Art as Experience continues to influence artists, educators, philosophers, and anyone interested in understanding the true meaning and purpose of art in human life.
First published in 1916, Democracy and Education is one of John Dewey's most influential works-an enduring classic in the philosophy of education. In this landmark book, Dewey explores the essential connection between democratic society and progressive education, arguing that education is both a social process and a fundamental method of democratic life.
Dewey challenges traditional, authoritarian models of schooling, advocating instead for an approach that encourages critical thinking, active participation, and learning through experience. He believes that true education is not about rote memorization or passive absorption, but about cultivating the intellectual and moral capacities of individuals to contribute meaningfully to society.
Combining deep philosophical insight with practical concerns, Democracy and Education remains a foundational text for educators, reformers, and anyone interested in how education shapes-and is shaped by-democratic values.
Experience and Nature (1925) is one of John Dewey's most significant philosophical works, offering a deep and challenging inquiry into the relationship between human experience and the natural world. In this ambitious book, Dewey argues that experience is rooted in nature-not separate from it-and that philosophy must begin with the realities of lived experience, rather than abstract metaphysical concepts.
Bridging naturalism, pragmatism, and empirical philosophy, Dewey explores how human thought, values, art, and science arise from natural interactions and evolve through continuous adaptation. He challenges dualisms such as mind vs. body, subject vs. object, and theory vs. practice, proposing instead a unified, dynamic view of reality.
With its rich insights and systematic scope, Experience and Nature remains a cornerstone of American philosophical thought-an essential text for those interested in pragmatism, philosophy of experience, epistemology, and the foundations of human understanding.
Explore the full scope of John Dewey's profound influence on modern thought with this comprehensive 30-book illustrated collection. Philosopher, educator, and reformer, Dewey was a pioneer of pragmatism and a central figure in the development of progressive education and democratic theory.
This complete edition features his most essential works-Democracy and Education, a cornerstone of educational philosophy; Experience and Education, a concise distillation of his educational ideals; and Freedom and Culture, where he examines the relationship between individual liberty and societal forces. In Philosophy and Civilization, Dewey reflects on the role of philosophy in shaping a democratic world, while Theory of Valuation explores the foundations of ethics and human values.
With thoughtful illustrations and careful formatting, The Complete Collection of John Dewey offers scholars, educators, and thoughtful readers an unparalleled opportunity to engage with the ideas that helped shape the 20th century-and continue to shape our world today.
Contents:
o Psychology (1887)
o My Pedagogic Creed (1897)
o The School and Society (1899)
o Leibniz's New Essays Concerning the Human Understanding (1902)
o The Child and the Curriculum (1902)
o Studies in Logical Theory (1903)
o Ethics (1908)
o Moral Principles in Education (1909)
o How We Think (1910)
o The Influence of Darwin on Philosophy (1910)
o Interest and Effort in Education (1913)
o Schools of To-morrow (1915)
o Democracy and Education (1916)
o Essays in Experimental Logic (1916)
o Reconstruction in Philosophy (1920)
o Letters from China and Japan (1920)
o Human Nature and Conduct (1922)
o Experience and Nature (1925)
o The Public and Its Problems (1927)
o Impressions of Soviet Russia and the Revolutionary World (1929)
o The Quest for Certainty (1929)
o Individualism Old and New (1931)
o Philosophy and Civilization (1931)
o Art as Experience (1934)
o A Common Faith (1934)
o Liberalism and Social Action (1935)
o The Philosophy of the Arts (1938)
o Experience and Education (1938)
o Logic, the Theory of Inquiry (1939)
o Theory of Valuation (1939)
o Freedom and Culture (1939)
Discover the enduring legacy of one of America's greatest philosophers and educators in The John Dewey Signature Classics-a beautifully illustrated 20-volume collection of his most influential works. From education and ethics to politics and metaphysics, Dewey's writings helped shape modern thought and continue to resonate in today's world.
This definitive set features landmark texts such as Democracy and Education, where Dewey reimagines schooling as the foundation of a vibrant democracy; Experience and Nature, his groundbreaking exploration of naturalistic philosophy; and How We Think, a timeless guide to reflective thought and learning.
Also included are Human Nature and Conduct, a pragmatic approach to ethics and behavior, and The Public and Its Problems, a foundational work in democratic theory and civic engagement.
Richly illustrated, this collection is an essential library for students, scholars, educators, and anyone interested in the roots of progressive thought, experiential learning, and the practical application of philosophy to everyday life.
Contents:
Psychology
My Pedagogic Creed
The School and Society
Leibniz's New Essays Concerning the Human Understanding
The Child and the Curriculum
Studies in Logical Theory
Ethics
Moral Principles in Education
How We Think
The Influence of Darwin on Philosophy
Interest and Effort in Education
Schools of To-morrow
Democracy and Education
Essays in Experimental Logic
Reconstruction in Philosophy
Letters from China and Japan
Human Nature and Conduct
Experience and Nature
The Public and Its Problems
Impressions of Soviet Russia and the Revolutionary World
The Quest for Certainty
The Philosophy of the Arts
John Dewey's Experience and Education (1938) is a landmark work in the philosophy of education, offering a thoughtful critique of both traditional and progressive schooling. In this concise yet profound book, Dewey explores the vital role of experience in the learning process, arguing that education should be rooted in meaningful, structured experiences that promote growth.
Dewey rejects the rigidity of traditional education-based on rote memorization and authority-as well as the unstructured chaos of extreme progressivism. Instead, he proposes a middle path, where teachers guide students through purposeful, experiential learning, fostering critical thinking, curiosity, and continuous development.
As relevant today as when it was first published, Experience and Education remains a foundational text for educators, scholars, and anyone interested in how we learn. Dewey's insights continue to influence modern pedagogy, emphasizing the importance of reflection, context, and the active role of the learner.
It should be possible to discern and describe a knowing as one identifies any object, concern, or event. It must have its own marks; it must offer characteristic features-as much so as a thunder-storm, the constitution of a State, or a leopard. In the search for this affair, we are first of all desirous for something which is for itself, contemporaneously with its occurrence, a cognition, not something called knowledge by another and from without-whether this other be logician, psychologist, or epistemologist. The "knowledge" may turn out false, and hence no knowledge; but this is an after-affair; it may prove to be rich in fruitage of wisdom, but if this outcome be only wisdom after the event, it does not concern us. What we want is just something which takes itself as knowledge, rightly or wrongly...
Author of "How to Make Ideas Clear" or "The Fixation of Belief", Charles Sanders Peirce was known as a great American Scientist and Philosopher, pioneer in the movement of Pragmatism. William James called Peirce the most original thinker of their generation. Peirce placed himself somewhere near the rank of Leibniz. This much is now certain; he is the most original and versatile of America's philosophers and America's greatest logician. "Peirce stands out as one of the great founders of modern scientific logic; and in the realm of general philosophy the development of some of his pregnant ideas has led to the pragmatism and radical empiricism of James, as well as to the mathematical idealism of Royce, and to the anti-nominalism which characterizes the philosophic movement known as Neo-Realism."...
Science represents the fruition of the cognitive factors in experience. Instead of contenting itself with a mere statement of what commends itself to personal or customary experience, it aims at a statement which will reveal the sources, grounds, and consequences of a belief. The achievement of this aim gives logical character to the statements. Educationally, it has to be noted that logical characteristics of method, since they belong to subject matter which has reached a high degree of intellectual elaboration, are different from the method of the learner-the chronological order of passing from a cruder to a more refined intellectual quality of experience. When this fact is ignored, science is treated as so much bare information, which however is less interesting and more remote than ordinary information, being stated in an unusual and technical vocabulary. The function which science has to perform in the curriculum is that which it has performed for the race: emancipation from local and temporary incidents of experience, and the opening of intellectual vistas unobscured by the accidents of personal habit and predilection. The logical traits of abstraction, generalization, and definite formulation are all associated with this function. In emancipating an idea from the particular context in which it originated and giving it a wider reference the results of the experience of any individual are put at the disposal of all men. Thus ultimately and philosophically science is the organ of general social progress.
