Ontology and Metaphysics in Vittorio Mathieu’s Thought

Abstract

Vittorio Mathieu’s ontology was developed in his last work, which bears the title Trattato di ontologia (Treatise of Ontology). The work, which seamlessly continues the previous writings, can be seen as the conclusive systematization of Mathieu’s thought. The present paper summarizes the main contents of Mathieu’s theoretical proposal, analyzing them from the perspective of neoclassical philosophy. Through the comparison of the positions of Gustavo Bontadini and Emanuele Severino, it is shown that phenomenological metaphysics cannot be considered as stable knowledge. Finally, it is suggested to keep Mathieu’s results, but rejecting his opposition to classical metaphysics and, in particular, to the ontological valence of the non-contradiction principle.