Authority,Inquiry, and Education: A Response to Dewey's Critics

In this article I seek to investigate and to rebut charges that Dewey had either too authoritative a conception or use of philosophical and educational inquiry, or not enough of an authoritative use. I look specifically at two critics, one in the discipline of education and one in the discipline of history. These two are, respectively, Clarence Karier and J. P. Diggins. In the final analysis, I conclude that Dewey's talk of authority generally, and his talk of inquiry specifically, functions according to the needs and problems of the community that it take place in, and cannot, therefore, be hooked to some larger, metaphysical end or aim beyond this.