Abstract

A great deal can be learned about this book by considering the author’s dedication: "to the memory of Paul Tillich who showed me where to look and to Walter Kaufmann who showed me how to see." This book is an ambitious effort to show the continuity and themes of nineteenth and early twentieth century continental philosophy. Tillich taught Schacht that in that fruitful era lie the roots of many of our philosophical and theological problems, i.e., where to look. Yet, many of the judgments about this period are informed by the interpretation already familiar from the writings of Walter Kaufmann. This is not to suggest that this book is a rehash of the sometimes confused and inaccurate interpretations of Kaufmann. No, Schacht is his own man and as fully capable of making his own mistakes as correcting some of Kaufmann’s.