Hegel and After: Studies in Continental Philosophy Between Kant and Sartre

... for those who want a good, clear, concise exposition of Continental philosophy since Kant, up to about 1975. Several of the chapters were originally published as articles in professional philosophy journals so this is sophisticated material. Nevertheless Schacht makes clear the main lines of thought of Hegel, Marx's philosophy, Kierkegaard, Nietzsche (Schacht is one of the leading Nietzsche scholars), Husserl, Heidegger, and Sartre, among others. This is a difficult and fascinating era in philosophy which Schacht manages to explicate with remarkable clarity and élan. He gets to the heart of each thinker's ideas and explains his relevance to the development of Continental philosophy, his influence and origins. Schacht's summaries of Husserl's and Heidegger's phenomenology and Sartre's existentialism are brilliant examples of concise philosophical exposition. I know of no other work that goes so sharply and understandably to the heart of Hegel's philosophy. But the entire book, every chapter, is full of insights and valuable clarifications. Schacht cuts through the obscurities and difficulties of these very difficult philosophers without dumbing them down. Schacht is a sophisticated philosopher himself and one of the leading expositors of modern philosophy. His interpretations are reliable and demonstrate the highest level of philosophical insight. I am distressed that this book is out of print. I found it extremely useful, and have reread and studied several of the chapters with pleasure and profit. I strongly recommend Hegel and After to anyone who is interested in getting a good overview of Continental philosophy from Hegel to Sartre. You do not need to be a professional philosopher to benefit from this book.

This is a great introduction to the developments in continental thought between the mid 19th century and the mid twentieth century. highly recommended.