Existentialism and Thomism

This is a collection of original essays dealing with aspects of contemporary Existentialism form the viewpoint of traditional (Aristotelian-Thomistic) philosophy. They are intended for the interested layman rather than the professional philosopher, and are accordingly less technical than the scholarly critique. The essays examine selected areas in the philosophies of Sartre, Marcel, Heidegger and Husserl, and discuss in general the challenge that modern Existentialism poses for traditional philosophy. Especially provocative is a critique of the Existentialist tendencies in Colin Wilson’s theory of The Outsider, with particular reference to its influence in the emergence of the “beat generation.”