The New American Philosophers [antikvár]

PREFACEThis book is the sequel to Recent American Philosophy (New York, 1964). It concentrates on philosophy in America since World War II, whereas the earlier volume treats philosophy in the period between the two world wars. By virtue of its contents and the method of presentation employed, the present volume stands on its own, although the two volumes together and separately aim to demonstrate the richness, diversity, and originality of American philosophy during the twentieth century.The new American philosophers are C. I. Lewis, Stephen Pepper, Brand Blanshard, Ernest Nagel, John Herman Randall, Jr., Justus Buchler, Sidney Hook, F. S. C. Northrop, James Kern Feibleman, John Wild, Charles Hartshorne, and Paul Weiss. Nine of the twelve are considered in separate chapters, but three of themNagel, Randall, and Buchlerbecause of the philosophical principles they share and because of their common institutional affiliation, are presented in a single chapter on Columbia University naturalism. Since the philosophers have been allowed, so far as possible, to speak for themselves, the text abounds with quotations from their works. The dozen philosophers have been selected on the basis of the representativeness, comprehensiveness, and originality of their philosophical contributions. Whatever misgivings may be felt over the omission of some philosophers, there can be no doubt that the twelve philosophers here treated deserve inclusion in any book that undertakes to assess American philosophy since World War II.