The Pragmatism Concept as Shown in The Grizzly Man Movie

Pragmatism and Bears

William James’ approach to epistemology is quite different compared to other philosophers. As some epistemological philosophy may seem somewhat hard to apply to real life situations, James’ philosophy, pragmatism, is applicable in a variety of different ways. First off, James establishes his philosophy by defining it. The pragmatic method relies on solid concrete evidence, it must make a difference, it is true to experience, and it is empiricist. James also believes that an individual’s own temperament is a factor when it comes to his philosophy, as well as finding truth about something. All of these things that make up pragmatism is applicable to the movie Grizzly Man. Grizzly Man is directed by Werner Herzog and is about Timothy Treadwell, a man who decides to live among grizzly bears. Many different people are interviewed about Timothy Treadwell and discuss their views on the entire situation. These individuals question if Treadwell was delusional and how exactly he could have possibly wanted to live among these dangerous creatures. William James and his pragmatic method would have been in compliance with Treadwell and supported him.

James would say that truth does not mean absolute certainty. When searching for truth, one should not search for an overarching, big truth. If you search for a big truth, you will realize it is not attainable. So, he would argue that truth is made largely out of previous truths, where experience plays a role. I believe this can tie in with Grizzly Man. In this documentary, there are a lot of people criticizing Treadwell for what he did. All of the people trying to figure out why or how Treadwell would deem his expenditure as safe are not following the pragmatist method. There is no one truth about the epistemological questions that are raised by those being interviewed. The only way to really understand is to start by understanding Treadwell. Now, James would question if Treadwell’s choice of going into this new life with the bears was a genuine option or not. It should be noted that Treadwell had a disordered life. He failed to connect with humans, especially women. Additionally, he was deep into alcoholism and was a failure as an actor. In a case where one’s life is not going according to plan, it is not surprising that he had a revelation about what he wanted to do with his life from here on out. According to James, when you are faced with a genuine option and no facts to help guide where to go, you can then make a decision based on passion. Treadwell did not have any other real options to go to and even if he did have any other options, it would not of given him the same fulfillment as he received from living with the bears. Though other people would try to contradict Treadwell by saying he had other options, his own experiences and perception led him to perceive it as a forced option. Ultimately, James would be supportive of that.

On a similar note, James feels the same way about those who pursue religion and actively defends those who are religious. In relation to God, James suggests that when evidence is insufficient, one can consult their passions in order to reach truth. The meaning of ‘true’ can be found by examining how the idea functioned in our own lives. This idea of living with the bears functioned very well in Treadwell’s life. He was happier and he felt as though he had meaning. Those who are religious find solace in their religion. For example, they have something to believe in and perhaps that makes them a better, more contributing person in a society. I would compare Treadwell and his situation to someone who is highly religious. As one of the people in the film said, he connected so deeply to the point that he was no longer human. He definitely seemed almost spiritually connected to this entire grizzly bear situation. Without the bears, he potentially would have been dead due to how severe his alcoholism was. Like religion, this saved him.

At the end of the day, I think Treadwell knew that he was in the bear’s territory and he knew how dangerous bears could be. He was not ignoring these facts. As with everything in nature, it is unpredictable. So, being killed by a bear is not surprising to many and probably was not even surprising to Treadwell. Ultimately, Treadwell detached from a normal society and ended up being fulfilled. Perhaps if he had stayed in a normal society, he would have ended up dead much sooner. Treadwell had faith and found his own truth, based on his own experiences and his own passions. James would have understood why Treadwell did this and how useful Treadwell’s decision to be with the bears was.