Matthew Groe

Ethical Coexistence Beyond Dualism: the Compatible Visions of John Dewey and Maurice Merleau-ponty Matthew Groe

This project bridges the divide between the American and the continental European traditions of philosophy to illuminate the ideas of John Dewey and Maurice Merleau-Ponty in a fresh way. Both of these twentieth-century thinkers sought to overcome our dualistic philosophical heritage without falling into idealism. They also sought to avoid objectivism, and the compatible views of rationality they formulated offer us a way to secure ethical reflection against the perils of relativity without yielding to the dogmatism of fixed ends and absolute principles. Because this book examines both of their philosophies in a comprehensive manner, from their earliest writings to their most mature works, it will be of interest to anyone wishing to understand the thought of Dewey or Merleau-Ponty, in addition to those searching for a new vision of ethical life.