Doing, Knowing, and Getting it Right : Methodologism as Pragmatism

This book introduces a fresh approach to knowledge and meaning in a pragmatist framework—methodologism. It is an essential resource for students and scholars of epistemology, language, and the philosophy of science, as well as readers across the humanities and social sciences interested in language, rationality, and their role in communities.

Representationalists view thought and language as mirrors of a mind-independent world. On this view, knowing is about accurately representing reality, and meaning lies in representational content. This book offers a pragmatist alternative: it argues that our practices are not just relevant but fundamental to both knowing and meaning—and that knowing-how should be seen as the primary form of knowledge. Building on neopragmatist tradition and engaging with classical pragmatism as well as recent work in epistemology, the philosophy of language, and the philosophy of science, the book develops and defends methodologism. This novel framework reorients questions of knowledge and meaning around rule-guided rational practices. The book will appeal to students and scholars in these fields, as well as readers across the humanities and social sciences interested in language, rationality, and their role in communities.