Contributions and Limits of Rortian Pragmatism for Political Agonism

Abstract

This paper is concerned with outlining how the ethnocentric pragmatism of Richard Rorty may serve, from an epistemological standpoint, to consolidate the practical advantages that agonism possess over deliberationism in the field of political philosophy. However, some problems are noted in the specific way that Rorty develops his particular agonist liberalism with regard to a potentially contradictory conception of the ethical-political place granted to victims of cruelty.