ABSTRACT
This chapter considers the “rabid” individualism at the center of William James thought and reflect on its implications for political theory. It argues that the extent to which some of the insights that James develops about our ethical improvement – about the strategies by which he thought people could become better and more strenuous individuals, more vital and energetic, more hopeful, can be transposed into the political arena. A strong “individualist” current runs through every aspect of James’s philosophy. James’s individualism also cautions epistemic humility. No one really knows what things are like on the inside for other people. There is much to be said for James’s gentle and humane vision, but there are problems too. Part of James’s flat-footedness about the importance of institutions and social structures can be explained by his aversion to what he would call “bigness.”.
