Susanne Langer (1895-1985) was one of American philosophy's most distinctive thinkers. Her philosophy was a deep exploration of human life as a continuous process of meaning-making through symbolic forms. Here, Robert E. Innis brings readers closer to Langer's precise and nuanced account of the symbolic mind. Innis shows how Langer's thought spans the sciences, aesthetics, psychology, religion, education, and music, and where it touches on concerns that were brought forward by American pragmatists such as John Dewey and William James. Innis reveals Langer's intense focus on making meaning clear as he covers her entire philosophical career. Highlighting what is of permanent value to American philosophy in Langer's work, he determines exactly what her positions were and why she proposed them. Readers will find a keen appreciation for and critical appraisal of Langer's unique philosophical vision.

A thorough account of Langer's philosophical career

About the Author

Robert E. Innis is Professor of Philosophy at the University of Massachusetts, Lowell. He is author of Semiotics: An Introductory Anthology (IUP, 1985) and Consciousness and the Play of Signs (IUP, 1994). His most recent book is Pragmatism and the Forms of Sense: Language, Perception, Technics.

Reviews

"This book is based on wide and deep erudition, written in an accessible, engaging, and eloquent manner." -Vincent Colapietro, The Pennsylvania State University

"Robert Innis has performed an immensely valuable service for scholars in the fields of American philosophy, aesthetics, and semiotics. Not only does his comprehensive view of Susanne K. Langer's opus show us its development, but this is the only book in English devoted solely to Langer." -The Pluralist

Book Information
ISBN 9780253220530
Author Robert E. Innis
Format Paperback
Page Count 296
Imprint Indiana University Press
Publisher Indiana University Press