Abstract

In this article I reconstruct some crucial concepts of John Dewey's naturalistic philosophical anthropology and ethics to show their importance for the Deweyan concept of democracy. In particular, I focus on such concepts, as “human nature”, “selfhood”, “individuality”, and “self-realization”, and argue that these concepts are indispensable if we want to effectively grasp what Dewey intended in his ideal of democracy. In this way I hope to show the vital significance of Dewey's thought for contemporary controversies in philosophical anthropology, ethics, social and political philosophy.Key words DEWEY, ANTHROPOLOGY, NATURALISM