Abstract

James is being rediscovered. And we have needed a volume that presents the multifaceted thought of one of America's most original and vital thinkers. McDermott has done an exceedingly skillful and sensitive job in presenting sections that reveal the man, the educator, the psychologist, the cultural critic, and the philosopher. The entire edition of the Essays in Radical Empiricism and A Pluralistic Universe is included as well as the 1907 edition of Pragmatism. There are also selected letters and chapters and essays from the Principles of Psychology, The Will to Believe, and The Varieties of Religious Experience. The editor's introduction vividly conveys a feeling for James, his cultural setting, and the major themes of his philosophy. A corrected version of Perry's Annotated Bibliography of the Writings of William James is included. For those who are ignorant of the richness and variety of James's thought, or for those who want to take another look at James, I can think of no better way than by reading this intelligently edited and reasonably priced volume.--R. J. B.