Agrarian Pragmatism

Abstract

AbstractNotions of agrarianism are reviewed and a preferred understanding of a sociopolitical philosophy stressing the role of agriculture and food systems in the organization and survival of human cultures is developed. This form of agrarianism emphasizes an evolutionary understanding of character traits, habits, and cultural systems. The chapter explores conceptual links to the pragmatism of Charles Peirce, William James, John Dewey, and Jane Addams. The view is contrasted to environmental philosophies that ground environmental duties in terms of human use value, on the one hand, or the intrinsic value of nature, on the other. Thomas Jefferson’s particular adaptation of an agrarian philosophy is shown to turn upon the political sustainability of the early American republic rather than on a romantic or bucolic understanding of morality, as some critics write. Jefferson is drawing on an understanding of the relationship between culture and the natural world that has a long philosophical history, continuing into the 20th century with Dewey’s emphasis on organism–environment interaction. Although the view has unappreciated strengths, it also supported racism and colonial exploitation, and these features are examined in detail.