On Being and Essence (Mediaeval Sources in Translation) Revised Edition

by Thomas Aquinas (Author)

8 customer reviews

ISBN-13: 978-0888442505

ISBN-10: 0888442505

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Because a small error in the beginning grows enormous at the end, as the Philosopher remarks in Book 1 of On the Heavens and the World, and being and essence are the first things to be conceived by our understanding, as Avicenna declares in Book 1 of his Metaphysics, in order to avoid falling into error about them, and to reveal their difficulties, we should see what are signified by the names of being and essence, how these are found in various things, and how they are related to the logical intentions of genus, species, and difference. And since we need to arrive at the cognition of simple components from the cognition of what they compose, and from those that are posterior to those that are prior, so that the discussion may suitably progress from the easier subjects, we should proceed from the signification of the name of being to the signification of the name of essence.--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

On Being and Essence (Mediaeval Sources in Translation)

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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Aquinas, while studying at the University of Naples, joined the Dominican monastic order in 1244. Under St. Albert the Great he embarked on a life of teaching, preaching, and writing. He was formally canonized in 1323.

Series: Mediaeval Sources in Translation (Book 1)
Paperback: 79 pages
Publisher: Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies; Revised edition (January 1, 1968)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0888442505
ISBN-13: 978-0888442505
Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 0.2 x 8.3 inches
Shipping Weight: 2.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 8 customer reviews
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #378,195 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #92 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Philosophy > Medieval Thought
- #667 in Books > Textbooks > Humanities > Philosophy > History & Surveys
- #77266 in Books > Religion & Spirituality

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Jim Stenberg

Clear, Concise and Informative

February 8, 2013

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

St. Thomas Aquinas wrote On Being and Essence for fellow students of philosophy. It would be an ambitious undertaking for a modern reader without a philosophical background, but for someone who knows a little about Aristotle's Metaphysics or scholastic philosophy it is a great read: clear, concise and informative. As Aquinas reminds us in the very first words of the book, "a slight initial error eventually grows to vast proportions". How better, then, to take some time understanding the most basic concepts used in metaphysical discourse? A misunderstanding here could lead to grave trouble later on, whether you are working in late medieval philosophy or on Aristotle himself. Let me emphasize that point: I do not think that the value of Aquinas as an interpreter of Aristotle has been adequately realized; On Being and Essence is valuable not just for understanding Aquinas, but for understanding Aristotle as well.

The book is short - 45 pages with the rest consisting of the usual: title page, table of contents, introduction (21 pages), bibliography (4) and index (3). I do not believe, however, that the value of philosophy can be measured by the page. The introduction and foot-notes, by Armand Maurer, are careful, precise and understated. They alone are worth the price of admission. On the whole I consider this book a gem in almost any philosophical library.

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Bobby Bambino

Being does not equal Essence (unless you're God)

March 11, 2014

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

This is a very short little book written by Aquinas. The actual book is only about 40 pages while the translator's introduction is about 30 pages. It is a very good book to study in order to really understand the difference between things like substance, being, essence, form, and nature. For example, Aquinas writes that "Form and matter are found in composite substances but is cannot be said that either of these alone is called the essence... an essence signifies the composite of matter and form." Very clear.

Although it is short, it contains Aquinas defending many propositions that he is known for teaching. In chapter 4 Aquinas gives a nice little proof of the immateriality of the soul. He shows that all angels are different species since "the essence of a simple entity is not received in matter [so] it cannot be multiplied." He proves God's existence from being. Aquinas discusses how God does not have an essence since, as the title suggests, it is the same as his being, and hence God is not in a genus. The last chapter discusses the relation between accidents and essence. Here Aquinas touches on the questions of how things like sex and skin color are related to essence, which is quite interesting.

I mean, what can I say, it's Aquinas, so it has to be very precise and accurate. It's a bit challenging, but at such a short length, it can be studied and digested over a long period of time.

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kelly a gertino

The problem of Being / Becoming still resounds with people ...

November 8, 2015

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

The problem of Being / Becoming still resounds with people who want to change their lifestyle, career, or internal mindset in the face of societal arrogance and pride. This book along with some prayer and a lot of disciplined thought will help.

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Amazon Customer

Five Stars

January 12, 2017

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

Excellent treatise!!! Thank you!!

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Lisski

Five Stars

May 6, 2015

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

Good source

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Thomas J. Donegan

Wish all Catholics would read this and many by Etienne Gilson, Josef Pieper, Father W. Norris Clarke et al...

March 4, 2013

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

Wish all Catholics would read this and many by Etienne Gilson, Josef Pieper, Father W. Norris Clarke et al...

Saint Thomas explains his metaphysics...

tjd

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Amazon Customer

Not worth the price, just print out from the Dominican House of Studies Priory website

October 13, 2016

Verified Purchase

Good:
-No fluff, just what Aquinas wrote in an English translation

Cons:
-The text of this is poorly spaced and quite small which makes reading quite difficult.
-No page numbers or paragraph numbers

Final Thoughts:
I got this for a philosophy class and after seeing the poor font and lack of page or pargraph numbers I put the book down and just printed out this work from the Dominican House of Studies Priory website. I think that it's about 17-18 pages printed out in English plus you have the option of having his original Latin.

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Kim

Used this book for a semester at my liberal arts ...

October 12, 2017

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

Used this book for a semester at my liberal arts college (surprise surprise) and it was effective in helping me pass the class, but only because I used outside sources. Was able to resell to my bookstore for about the same price I paid though, so that's a plus!

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