I had only a vague idea of what metaphysics
was prior to reading this book. Had I known, I probably wouldn’t have snagged this book from whatever pile of used books it came from. But really, I should have had a clue. Wikipedia notes that metaphysics is the study of what transcends physics
. Duh. Strike one on me. To tell the truth, such questions as Does the world exist outside the mind?
don’t really interest me. I tend generally toward a view of philosophy as espoused by the pragmatists.
Nevertheless, I don’t think I would have gained much of an understanding of Jacques Maritain’s view of Thomist metaphysics from reading the book. His writing is convoluted. The sentence diagrams for a typical passage would look like the worst spaghetti code I ever wrote. He uses terms and Latin phrases that no one outside of a philosophy major would ever bother to learn.
My general feeling is: don’t bother with this. Luckily, I doubt anyone reading this ever will.
Title: A preface to metaphysics: seven lectures on being
Author: Jacques Maritain
Imprint / publisher: Mentor Omega / New American Library
Format: Mass market paperback
Length: 142 p.
Publication date: 1962
Subject: Ontology
LC classification: BD312 .M32 1945
