Abstract

This book is designed to demonstrate that "the bibliography of philosophy has not emerged directly from a barbaric past; it has a long history...". It begins with the first known printed bibliography, that of Frisius in 1592, and works its way methodically to 1960. By sketching the contents and divisions of these bibliographies, Jasenas provides us with evidence of what philosophers of different eras took philosophy to be. Some bibliographers were professional philosophers and some were not. But it is clear that those who were not philosophers generally consulted philosophers in preparing their bibliographies. Particularly interesting is the way in which Jasenas ties a given bibliography to the cultural, intellectual, social, political and even musical happenings of the day. This is especially the case when he offers an explanation for the absence of one or other book in a given bibliography. He is careful to note the religious and philosophical preferences of the bibliographer. Granted there is a good deal of speculation and likely guesswork on Jasenas’ part, his suggested explanations give to his book an importance which it would have lacked without them.