This second edition is fully revised throughout, and includes a new chapter is devoted to educational philosophy. An invaluable introduction and guide to this deeply influential philosopher and his legacy, and essential reading for those studying Dewey in philosophy and related disciplines, including education and politics.

John Dewey (1859 - 1952) was the dominant voice in American philosophy through the World Wars, the Great Depression, and the nascent years of the Cold War. With a professional career spanning three generations and a profile that no public intellectual has operated on in the U.S. since, Dewey's biographer Robert Westbrook accurately describes him as "the most important philosopher in modern American history".

In this superb and engaging introduction, Steven Fesmire begins with a chapter on Dewey’s life and works, before discussing and assessing Dewey's key ideas across the major disciplines in philosophy; including metaphysics, epistemology, ethics, social-political philosophy, educational philosophy, aesthetics, and religious philosophy. This second edition is fully revised throughout, taking account of new directions in work on Dewey and the challenges to Dewey's philosophy in the form of recent attacks on democracy, the resurgence of nationalism and authoritarianism, moral fundamentalism, the climate crisis, and persistent racial injustice. A new chapter is devoted to educational philosophy, and the text has also been clarified and refined, ensuring it is even better for those coming to Dewey's thought for the first time.

This is an invaluable introduction and guide to this deeply influential philosopher and his legacy, and essential reading for those studying Dewey in philosophy and related disciplines, including education and politics.