Pragmatické momenty v aktivistické filozofii a estetice Emanuela Rádla
Pragmatic elements in the activistic philosophy and aesthetics of Emanuel Rádl

Summary/Abstract: This article presents several aspects of Emanuel Rádl’s philosophy and aesthetics in the polemically charged atmosphere of the philosophical debate within Czech circles during the first half of the 20th century, focusing on the parallels between his thinking and John Dewey’s American pragmatism. Previous reflections on Rádl’s work have lacked this more open comparison between his ideas and pragmatism. The aim of our text will be to fill in this gap in the literary‑aesthetic field and the philosophical issues involved. Although Rádl was primarily a philosopher, his works, reflecting his own personal inclinations, always tended very much to cross numerous boundaries. Hence his philosophical speculations also include significant incursions into other fields, including those which might briefly be described as literary‑aesthetic. Hence his thinking over the creation and reception of literary works cannot be separated from the question of knowledge and truth in general – the philosophical base from which Rádl’s ideas on literature organically develop. A comparison of Rádl’s thoughts with Dewey’s book Art as Experience shows that a non‑confrontational comparison in both directions over the question of knowledge can certainly be achieved particularly regarding the requirements of viability and deep personal sympathy, though not of course regarding the overall motivation behind this approach, because in contrast to Dewey, for whom motivation derives from personal benefit, Rádl says it always remains moral. This difference is seen most clearly in the question of truth, though it is also evident in the field of aesthetics. Rádl’s theory on the reception of literary works is indeed based on the concept of experience, but its acquisition in contrast to Dewey’s aesthetic experience is again a deeply ethical act.

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