The Essential Peirce, Volume 1 (1867–1893)

The first of two volumes of key texts from American philosopher Charles Sanders Peirce, the father of pragmatism.

“Often considered the greatest American philosopher, Peirce produced no comprehensive treatise; until now, students and scholars had to read through widely scattered papers to gain an overall view of his thought. This anthology remedies that situation by offering a full representation of his work, including several hard-to-obtain items. . . . Highly recommended for scholarly collections.” —Library Journal

A convenient two-volume reader's edition makes accessible to students and scholars the most important philosophical papers of the brilliant American thinker Charles Sanders Peirce. Volume 1 presents twenty-five key texts, chronologically arranged, beginning with Peirce’s “On a New List of Categories” of 1867, a highly regarded alternative to Kantian philosophy, and ending with the first sustained and systematic presentation of his evolutionary metaphysics in the Monist Metaphysical Series of 1891–1893. The book features a clear introduction and informative headnotes to help readers grasp the nature and significance of Peirce’s thought system. Bringing together all the writings needed for the study of Peirce’s systematic philosophy and its development, Volume 1 is ideal for classroom use. Volume 2, covering the period from 1894 until Peirce’s death in 1914, will highlight the development of his system of signs and his mature pragmatism.

“A first-rate edition, which supersedes all other portable Peirces. . . . All the Peirce most people will ever need.” —Louis Menand, The New York Review of Books

“The Monist essays are included in the first volume of the compact and welcome Essential Peirce; they are by Peirce's standards quite accessible and splendid in their cosmic scope and assertiveness.” -London Review of Books