Chapter 7 - The Permanent Philosophy Summary and Analysis

In this chapter, Chesterton illustrates how St. Thomas' philosophy was one that was based on a fundamental acceptance of reality as being real and as being what it is. The realism of St. Thomas is contrasted with the superficial realism of so-called anthropologists, who do not want to understand man in his entirety, but just as a brute animal. St. Thomas, on the other hand, treats of man in his entirety, not just insofar as he is an animal. In fact, these contrasts are seen more completely in contrast with modern philosophy, which often denies the very existence of reality at all. Even those philosophers who will admit that there is a reality will often stop short of accepting it for what it is, and are unwilling to admit either that things in...