This accessible introduction to the philosophy of William James reveals a significant division between a Promethean type of pragmatism and passive mysticism which Richard Gale integrates. While James' "pragmatist" persona conceives of truth and meaning as a means to control nature and make it do our bidding, his "mystic" persona eschews the use of concepts to penetrate the inner conscious core of all being, including nature at large.
This accessible introduction to the philosophy of William James reveals a significant division between a Promethean type of pragmatism and passive mysticism which Richard Gale integrates. While James' "pragmatist" persona conceives of truth and meaning as a means to control nature and make it do our bidding, his "mystic" persona eschews the use of concepts to penetrate the inner conscious core of all being, including nature at large.