Abstract

This is an undergraduate text which limits itself to consideration of metaphysics from the standpoint of the essence and existence of being. Insight into the notion of being is sought by analogy in the transcendental notions of the "one," the "true," the "good," and the "beautiful." Each chapter is followed by a summary, a set of exercises and a select bibliography. The book does not quite live up to the promise in the preface to incorporate or parry the contributions of modern philosophers to metaphysics. The main effort of the book is to explain classical metaphysics in classical terms with only limited contemporary reactions. The most glaring omission is the lack of reference to Whitehead, whose criticism of classical metaphysics is itself a classic in the realm of contemporary metaphysics.--H. B.