Pragmaticist explorations: C.S. Peirce, the logic of inquiry and international relations

Abstract

<p>The philosophical tradition of Pragmatism has recently entered the fray of international relations (IR) debates. Pragmatism has so far been mainly employed in meta-theoretical discussions over the foundations of the discipline, and to address normative and methodological questions characterizing this field of studies. The main sources of inspiration in these discussions have been classic pragmatist writers such as John Dewey and William James. The work of one of the major figures of this tradition, Charles Sanders Peirce, has been by and large neglected in the literature. The claim advanced in this paper is that the application of some of the American philosopher’s key insights, especially those regarding the logic of inquiry, to first order issues in world politics can enrich the current ‘pragmatist turn’ in IR and contribute to the expansion of the theoretical horizons of the discipline.</p>