First published in 1886, California: A Study Of American Character: From The Conquest In 1846 To The Second Vigilance Committee In San Francisco is a study providing an early history of California and which seeks to provide a more realistic assessment of the state than most. Josiah Boyce found he could not trust many of the historic narratives about the state's founding, and sought a more candid, realistic view of the pioneers. Fact and myth are contracted in an important history which pulls no punches.

....but Royce is a very fine writer, and his book on California history, though penned long ago, makes very interesting reading. At the center of the book is Royce's discussion of Fremont's role in the conquest of California, and the conclusions he draws after interviewing Fremont himself and even showing him parts of this book. Definitely required reading for the student of California history.

I am writing a research thesis on how Schopenhauer influenced T.S. Eliot's "Four Quartets," so this book showed how T.S. Eliot read and discussed Schopenhauer in the Seminar (p. 120). Eliot was one of nine other people taking the seminar with Josiah Royce and he was clearly influenced by his reading and discussion of Kant and post-Kantian philosophers in his writing.

Josiah Royce was one of America's leading philosophers at the turn of the century, and the son of Sarah Royce, whose memoir of the Gold Rush days in California is a classic in its own right. Though Royce is usually identified as an idealist (especially evident in early books such as The Spirit of Modern Philosophy and The World and the Individual), his mature philosophy took a turn toward a more naturalistic approach. In The Philosophy of Loyalty, Royce argued that the natural phenomenon of ordinary loyalty to friends and family would, in the proper environment, blossom into a moral commitment to promote "loyalty to loyalty", or to the broadest and most comprehensive conception of human community. This suggestion is explored at considerably greater length in The Problem of Christianity, where Royce argues the idea of the Church is the singular philosophical contribution of the Christian tradition, rather than its supernaturally oriented theologies. The Philosophy of Loyalty is an essential read for anyone interested in philosophy circa 1900, and would be of interest to those searching for a way to combine the universalizing elements of Kantian ethics with the appeal of a theory that emphasizes personal loyalty and place bound elements.

I'm delighted to see this work of Royce's in print; it wasn't, the last time I looked for it. Royce was one of the truly great American philosophers and I'm glad he hasn't been forgotten.

In this volume, originally published in 1892 and based on a series of lectures, Royce presents masterly critical overviews of such philosophers as Spinoza, Kant, and Hegel, rendering in clear language what those philosophers (especially Hegel) presented technically and with great complexity. This work will be of interest both to readers of those other philosophers and to those who want to trace their influence on Idealist philosophy.

There is also some of Royce's own thought here. William James once teased Royce that he was in the habit of writing long books and then sticking everything important that he _really_ wanted to say in an appendix. This volume is no exception; one of the later chapters presents what may be the clearest exposition of the Idealist thesis ever presented. Royce was a fine expositor, and whether you agree with his thesis or not, you will be hard pressed to find a better presentation of it.

Royce was an unusual Idealist -- rather too individualistic for the tastes of the block-universe fellows over in Great Britain, and thus something of a heretic. He was a highly original thinker whose influence is still felt today even when his name isn't mentioned. (His influence on pragmatism alone is worthy of mention, but he also made important critiques of Bradley and others that really should be taken up into the current renaissance of Idealist studies.)

Royce, in short, still very much deserves to be read. This volume is a fine place to start. (I see that _The World and the Individual_ is in print again too, so try that one next!)

This volume _may_ be Royce's best work, and I'm delighted to see that it's available again (I had to buy a used copy when I looked for it some time ago). Royce was a genuinely great American philosopher and he still deserves to be read. More individualistically inclined than his Idealist brethren across the Atlantic, he was arguably also a more critical thinker than his American Idealist contemporaries; for my money, the only subsequent American philosopher to fill his footsteps was Brand Blanshard (and he wasn't quite an Idealist).

Since _The Spirit of Modern Philosophy_ is also available, I'd personally recommend that book to the beginning reader of Royce. But do come back to this one. Most of Royce's subsequent work is devoted to developing his philosophy of loyalty and his vision of human community; it's very good, but he seldom returns to the metaphysical issues he discusses here, at least not in this much depth.

Now if we can just get _The Religious Aspect of Philosophy_ back in print . . .

Royce provides a fairly open-minded and integrationist viewpoint, given the day and age he lived in. His assertion that he belongs to the race of mankind, one far below that of angels and as a whole in need of elevation, is certainly startling given the racial situation of his day and age. Enlightening, well-written and interesting. Recommended if you can track down a copy.