Abstract

Almost everyone who encounters the philosophy of Santayana sees that a crucial aspect of it concerns the relation of essence and existence. About twenty-five years before the publication of the first volume of Realms of Being, Royce pointed out that the gist of Santayana’s thought was the separation of these two states. Perhaps Santayana had that remark in mind in composing much of his subsequent work. At least, for forty years he did not forget it, since he quoted it in the Schilpp volume. It might be appropriate to ask how far Santayana proceeded toward reconciling the apparently incompatible elements of the essence-existence dichotomy. This essay will consider that question, first, in the context of the essence-existence relationship in itself; second, in the context of the direct bearing of this relation on Santayana’s doctrine of truth; and third, in the context of the interrelation of the four realms of being.