One Hundred Years of Philosophy

Book excerpt: This collection originated in the centenary celebration of the School of Philosophy at The Catholic University of America. Written by experts in their fields, the essays are intended to provide a unique overview of philosophical developments in the 20th century. The first set of essays deals with philosophy in the English-speaking world. Thomas R. Russman argues that British philosophy is best understood as reflecting a long-standing preoccupation with the refutation of idealism. William Wallace narrates the development of the philosophy of science. Peter Simpson provides an account of Anglo-American moral theory, and Robert George discusses Anglo-American legal philosophy. The second set of essays deals with developments within the Catholic world. Frederick Crosson offers an overview of a century of Catholic social teaching, focusing on the central question of the relationship between the policial and the moral in such figures as Maritain, Murray and MacIntyre. Timothy Noone reflects on the course of medieval scholarship and philosophy in the 20th century. Kenneth Schmitz contributes an authoritative overview of German Catholic thought in the last century. Richard Schenk introduces readers to one of the most significant German Catholic philosophers of the latter part of the 20th century, Robert Spaemann, and his ethics. Also included is Spaemann's own analysis of the relationship between Christianity and modern philosophy. A third set of essays concerns continental philsophy. Nicholas Lobkowicz debunks the idea that there was a powerful spell cast on German thought by Karl Marx, and shows instead that what passed for Marx's influence was really Left-Hegelianism. Robert Sokolowski provides a detailed treatment of a different strain of German thought in his overview of phenomenology. A final set of essays considers new areas of philosophical concern. Daniel Dahlstrom explores prominent developments in philosophy and art that have brought aesthetics to the center of philosophical inquiry. Eugene Long chronicles the burgeoning discipline of the philosophy of religion. In the concluding essay, A.S. Cua explores the ways in which western philosophy has influenced 20th-century Chinese philosophy.