Dewey’s Contribution to an American Hubris: Philosophy of Democracy, Education, and War

Abstract

For over a century, John Dewey has been beloved by progressive educators. In recent decades, he has become central in a renewed interest in classical pragmatism; today he is a forefather to development of a vibrant neo-pragmatism by an international community of scholars. Biographically, that Dewey was a fallible human being has always been to his credit but that he appeared to “change ideological stripes” over World War I has not been so. Critics have pondered this decision; in these assessments, character of person and philosophy have received attention, although no one has yet painted him with the brush of hubris. The thesis of this essay is that Dewey contributed to an American hubris that began in the progressive era of the First World War and that has continued. This hubris has constituted an American nation as militaristic, as “the” world power, superior in the belief that it possesses a particular democratic way of life that all others ought to follow.