We turn our attention back to an important historical event that would lay the foundation for modern labor relations in the U.S. while also providing a basis and justification for classic pragmatism and progressive thought. In 1894, the Pullman Palace Car Company, a manufacturer of railway cars, faced economic difficulties and elected to cut wages. However, their workers lived in the company town of Pullman and received no corresponding relief in rents and costs of living. This would lead to a wildcat strike that quickly grew into a larger national strike against the railroads. Unfortunately, because the strike disrupted U.S. mail services, the government would intervene to keep the railroads going. The strike was violent with dozens killed and hundreds injured. The aftermath included a rise in the U.S. labor movement and significant shifts in the American political landscape.

Jane Addams, a thought leader behind the emergence of classic pragmatism, witnessed these horrific events and asked herself whether the violence was necessary or preventable. In her speech, A Modern Lear, she offered her reflections using the famous Shakespearean tragedy, King Lear, as an analogy. The emotions she conveyed of horror, shock, and disgust are clear, but she was more focused on critiquing the actions of both sides and finding ways to help others avoid a similar fate She delivered the speech in late 1894 to a couple of women’s clubs in Chicago near the origins of the strike and New York. The speech would eventually be published in 1912.

We chose this reading because it follows last month’s release of Gouldner’s work, Patterns of Industrial Bureaucracy, that presented the situation of a gyspum mine preceding a similar wildcat strike by the workers. In Addams’ work and in our discussions, we consider what possibilities may exist in apply pragmatism to such situations in contemporary times.

Read with us:

Addams, J. (1912). A modern Lear. Survey, 29, 131-137.

To Learn More:

Brendel, D. H. (2006). Healing psychiatry: Bridging the science/humanism divide. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.

Lorino, P. (2018). Pragmatism and organization studies. Oxford University Press.

Shields, P. M. (2003). The community of inquiry: Classical pragmatism and public administration. Administration & Society, 35(5), 510-538.

________. (2008). Rediscovering the taproot: Is classical pragmatism the route to renew public administration? Public Administration Review, 68(2), 205-221.

Other Talking About Organizations Podcast episodes referenced:

Episode 5. The Law of the Situation — Mary Parker Follett

Episode 41. Images of Organization — Gareth Morgan