Books by Louis Menand
“It’s a beautifully crafted group biography about the birth of the first American school of philosophy – pragmatism. Pragmatism is an idea about ideas. The gist is to assess theories based on their efficacy. Menand describes ideas as being like microchips or screwdrivers, tools that help us achieve results. That concept sprung from this generation. So, the four figures it tells this birth story through are Oliver Wendell Holmes, who became the legal embodiment of pragmatism, William James, who is the philosopher of pragmatism, Charles Pierce, who was James’s mentor, and John Dewey, who made James’s ideas more coherent and more part of popular conversation.” Read more...
The best books on The Roots of Liberalism
Franklin Foer, Journalist
Interviews where books by Louis Menand were recommended
The best books on The Roots of Liberalism, recommended by Franklin Foer
As part of our series on American progressivism, journalist and author Franklin Foer discusses the genesis of liberalism and how the American Civil War remade politics.
