This is a recording of a 1924 essay published by McTaggart that summarizes the arguments and conclusions he arrives at in his magnum opus, "The Nature of Existence."
Here is a link to McTaggart's essay, "An Ontological Idealism:"
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Below is G.W. Cunningham's summary of McTaggart's argument:
“The idealism which he defends, McTaggart tells us, “rests on the assertion that nothing exists but spirit.” This assertion, he says, is established, or at least rendered highly probable, by the consideration that, among the supposed substances prima facie known to us, spiritual substance alone can escape a fatal contradiction in its nature. The argument in support of this consideration centers round the following theses: Every substance must necessarily have a sufficient description-a description, that is, which is stated in terms of the characteristics (qualities and relations) of the substance, and which applies only to that substance and applies to it in such a manner that the substance is absolutely identified by the description. But every substance has parts which are substances, and, therefore, every substance is infinitely divisible. How, then, under this condition, is a sufficient description of any substance possible? It is possible only on one condition, namely, that the principle of determining correspondence obtains within substance; in other words, only provided there is in substance itself the basis for a chain of implications running downwards from precedent to sequent sets of parts to infinity. And this must be such that sufficient descriptions of the precedent sets of parts imply sufficient descriptions of all the infinite sequent sets of parts In no other manner can the infinite series of parts be other than vicious, and a contradiction in the nature of substance itself be avoided. Therefore, only substance in which the principle of determining correspondence obtains can exist. Spiritual substance is the only substance, among those with which we are prima facie acquainted, in which the principle of determining correspondence holds. Hence substance must be spiritual, and spirit alone truly exists.” (Cunningham, The Idealistic Argument in Recent British and American Philosophy, 459-460)
“The main theses here are four: every substance must have a sufficient description; every substance is infinitely divisible into substances; the principle of determining correspondence must obtain within substance; and spirit is the only known substance within which the principle of determining correspondence obtains.” (Cunningham, The Idealistic Argument in Recent British and American Philosophy, 460)
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