HISTORY OF MODERN PHILOSOPHY

The plain man, and even the thinking man whose thought has travelled along other than philosophical channels, are apt to disclaim any ability to understand philosophy; and beneath the disclaimer often lurks a doubt whether the subject is worth understanding. The comparison of the philosopher to “a blind man in a dark room trying to find a black cat that isn’t there” represents the opinion of many who in their own departments are by no means “low-brows.” Yet philosophy is in fact only the attempt to think rigorously and consistently about the world which undeniably is there. It requires in its votaries only a capacity for rigorous and consistent thought, and curiosity about problems which challenge such thought. Benn’s History gives the reader a succinct and intelligible account of the way in which, starting from the first beginnings of freedom of thought at the close of the Middle Ages, the problems of philosophy presented themselves to successive thinkers, and of their formulation and treatment by each. The work closes with the end of the nineteenth century. The time which has elapsed since the book appeared perhaps justifies the addition of a chapter by the present writer giving a short summary of recent developments.

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