Ortega y Gasset Jose

Ortega y Gasset, Jose (Ortega y Gasset, Jose) (1883-1955), Spanish writer and philosopher, one of the foremost intellectuals of 20 in. Ortega and his contemporary, Miguel Unamuno known as 'philosophers of the agora', the people who popularized his ideas by means of newspaper articles, specially created for this purpose, magazines, books and public lectures.
Ortega was born in Madrid on May 9, 1883. He was educated in Malaga and Madrid, became a doctor of philosophy in 1904. Already in 1902, wrote articles for the newspaper 'El Imparsial' ( 'El Imparcial'). Trained at the University of Marburg with Hermann Cohen, who has had a significant impact on. In 1910 he became a professor of metaphysics University of Madrid

. In 1914 Ortega published his first book - "Reflections on Don Quixote" (Meditationes del Quijote) and read the famous lecture on "Old and new politics" (Vieja y nueva politica), . which outlined the position of young intellectuals of the time in relation to political and moral problems in Spain,
. Some historians consider it address an essential milestone in the chain of events that led to the downfall of the monarchy. In 1915, in cooperation with Asorinom, Barohoy and Perez de Aiello founded the magazine 'Spain' ( 'Espaц?a'), and in 1917 - 'El Sol' ( 'El Sol'). Soon Ortega became famous in Latin America, in 1916 he read a series of lectures in Argentina. In 1923 he established the magazine "Revista de Occidente '(' Revista de Occidente '), in which the Hispanic world provides the latest achievements in the field of philosophy, science and literature. When General Primo de Rivera declared himself dictator of Spain in December 1923, Ortega, like many other professors, relinquished the position at the University. In February 1931, two months before the regime change, he formed a small political union 'group in the service of the republic' ( 'La agrupacion al servicio de la republica'), and then was elected to the new constitutional assembly. In 1933, Ortega retired from politics, and when civil war broke out, he left Spain. In 1936-1945 he lived in Europe, Argentina and Portugal. In 1948, founded in Madrid Institute for Human Sciences. Ortega died in Madrid on October 18, 1955.

Works Ortega, such as "Reflections on Don Quixote" and "spineless Spain" (Espaц?a invertebrada, 1921), reflect the mindset of the author as a Spaniard and European. His intellectual ability and artistic talent are evident in such works as "theme of our time" (El tema de nuestro tiempo, 1923) and "dehumanization of art" (La deshumanizacion del arte, 1925). But just as the prologue to "Reflections on Don Quixote, you can find the main ideas of the philosophy of Ortega. Here he gives a definition of man: 'I am I and my surroundings' ( 'Yo soy yo y mi circunstancia'), ie. man can not be considered in isolation from the surrounding circumstances of history. Ortega sought a compromise between idealism (exaggerate the importance of mind) and realism (exaggerate the importance of things) and suggested that a philosophy of life, the connection of things I. Each life is one of the points of view on the universe; plural truth, no one can claim that his view is the only true. Life - it's a drama, the choice in the sense of existentialist. Understanding the German philosopher Wilhelm Dilthey's influence on philosophical and historical views of Ortega, . have found expression in his work "History as a system" (Historia como sistema, . 1941), . a new approach to the study of fundamental problems of human existence,
.

World fame Ortega brought his work "The revolt of the masses" (La RebeliцЁn de las masas, 1930). In a sense, the name does not match the content, because the array does not have in mind the proletariat. According to Ortega, mankind is divided not on the social classes, and two types of people: the elite (the spiritual aristocracy) and the mass. The latter lacks the ability to self-assessment and as a result of low system itself. Man 'masses' mediocre, boring and wants to remain as he is, to be 'like everyone else'. Weight, therefore, is a collection of individuals focused on the life of the masses. The presence of large numbers of such people is typical of 20 in. Thanks to liberal democracy and technological progress has been made possible high quality of life, which flattered the vanity of those who enjoyed its benefits and not thinking about the limitations of their existence, no thought about the big world. Job Ortega ends the requirement that the power was transferred to the minority - the spiritual elite. He also suggests that Western Europe has teamed up once again and began to influence the course of events in the world.

Although Ortega is an outstanding thinker of our time, we should not forget about the talent as a writer philosopher. In his writings, as in the works of Unamuno, the form and content are inextricably linked. Style abounds in unusual and elegant metaphors arise (on his own theory) of unmet needs in terms. Being a true artist of words, Ortega artistically use the language of metaphor and thus become a unique thinker of our time.