Wahl, Jean (Heidegger, Martin; Jaspers, Karl; Kierkegaard, Soren; Sartre, Jean-Paul; Wahl, Jean et al.)

A Short History of Existentialism

New York, NY: The Philosophical Library, 1949. First American Edition. Hardcover. "A well-known French philosopher and poet, speaking from a philosophical milieu which he helped to create, surveys "existentialism" and philosophies of existence in an informal, yet critical, fashion. Philosophy of existence is viewed as a "perennial philosophy," ancient as inspired existential thought, recent as the eloquent reaction of the great Danish thinker, Soren Kierkegaard, to the idealism of Hegel. From long acquaintance with its doctrines and proponents, the author exhibits in their chronological relationships to earlier thought the contemporary philosophy of Jaspers, Heidegger, and Sartre." (from front flap) A brief but intensive contemporary survey of the philosophy of existentialism & its antecedents by Jean (Andre) Wahl (1888-1974), the noted French philosopher who was himself among the founders-explicators of existentialism. With chapters on the philosophies of Soren Kierkegaard, Karl Jaspers & Martin Heidegger, & Jean-Paul Sartre (most popularly associated with existentialism); followed by a "Critique of Existentialism" & a "Discussion of Existentialism" by contemporary philosophers. Hardcover in unclipped dust jacket, first American edition, first printing (though neither explicated as such at copyright page), published simultaneously with the first French edition. We note that the dust jacket appears to be one of several concurrent graphic variations. From the collection of George Bornstein (1941-2021), the late, great scholar, author & academician here in Ann Arbor at the University of Michigan- a quintessential Man of Letters who was a dearly missed friend & mentor to this writer. At upper left area of blank front paste-down, Bornstein has neatly written his signature, the date of November 25, 1959 (when he was a college freshman studying this very text), & other information in blue ink. Throughout the volume, mostly in pencil & occasionally in ink, Bornstein has underlined or highlighted many passages. These points, considering who wrote them, are in our view enhancements. An essential collectible that sheds light on this famous philosophy at the height of its influence, with distinguished & enriching provenance. Book in relatively quite near-fine condition with very slight rubbing to front, back covers & spine; mild-to-moderate wear at edges & corners of same incl. some loss of orange surface; mild rubbing, browning to edges of text block. Interior near-fine with Bornstein's owner information & highlighting as noted above (again an enhancement in this case), mild browning, occasional spotting to blank paste-downs & endpapers; light browning mostly to blank margins/edges of page leaves. Dust jacket in relatively good condition with mild-to-moderate rubbing, browning, scratching & fading to front, back covers, spine & flaps; moderate-to-significant wear, bumps & creasing at edges & corners of same (least at flaps) incl. mostly closed tears, chips with moderate loss of paper, surface paper. Near Fine / good. [Item #5792]

Price: $50.00