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Article: Rescher, Nicholas. Reason and Reality: Realism and Idealism in Pragmatic Perspective.(Book review)
- Article from:
- The Review of Metaphysics
- Article date:
- March 1, 2006
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2006 Philosophy Education Society, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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RESCHER, Nicholas. Reason and Reality: Realism and Idealism in Pragmatic Perspective. Lanham: Rowman and Littlefield, 2005. ix + 169 pp. Cloth, $60.00--At the very beginning the author himself tells us: "This book sets out the theoretical underpinnings of the idealistic approach to metaphysical realism that its author has developed over several decades" (p. ix). It brings to a focus and constitutes a powerful argument for his "functional pragmatism" which is the outcome of what he calls a "hermeneutical realism."
The central idea is that, since we have no substantial evidence for arguing from personal experience to a mind-independent reality, we must yet suppose ...