From: Matt the Enraged Endorphin (mpkundert@students.wisc.edu)
Date: Mon Jan 27 2003 - 18:25:55 GMT
DMB, Rick,
DMB said:
Pragmatism seems to evade and ignore the issues and aspects of
life that strike me as the most important things. I mean, "practically"
speaking, music, art and fun have no value, yet people spend a great deal of
time and money in pursuit of their enjoyment. Pragmatism, YUK!
Matt:
As I'm beginning to see it, I think pragmatism is getting a bad rap by
people who would otherwise be partial to it. So, to clear up this
misunderstanding, pragmatism certainly does not treat music, art, or fun as
having no value. That would be to treat "practicality" too narrowly. The
pragmatist wants to replace our usual differentiation between "stuff that
is necessary" and "stuff that isn't necessary, but fun" with a continuum of
practicality. Stuff that's necessary would include everything from flying
planes, teaching classes, doing taxes, driving taxis, painting pictures,
watching TV, and going out and getting bombed and having a good time. It's
necessary in the way that you feel its necessary for you and/or society and
you would to choose the most practical way of pursuing your desires (and
society's desires). As I see it, what you've created practicality to be,
above, is a social measurement. Its only practical if its good for a lot
of people (which having a good time doesn't necessarily fall under). The
pragmatist wishes practicality to be a little more ubiquitous than that.
Matt
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