The Greek Roots of Pragmatism: A New Name for an Old Way of Thinking

Abstract

In this talk I intend to defend three theses: 1) that our society is in various aspects very close to the results-culture or shame-culture sketched in the

Iliad poem. 2) that pragmatism seized these aspects and translated them in a new philosophical attitude, that succeeds in being revolutionary and fruitful of unforeseeable consequences. I would intend it as a sort of “new use of old powers”, in a pure Darwinian spirit. 3) I will sustain, thus, that the “Pragmatist revolution”, as I will call it, is deeply rooted in the archaic foundations of our culture.