Origins & Early Life

José Ortega y Gasset ( or-TAY-gə; Spanish: [xoˈse oɾˈteɣa j ɣaˈset]; 9 May 1883 – 18 October 1955) was a Spanish philosopher and essayist. He worked during the first half of the 20th century while Spain oscillated between monarchy, republicanism and dictatorship. His philosophy has been characterized as a "philosophy of life" that comprised "a long-hidden beginning in a pragmatist metaphysics" inspired by William James and with a general method from a realist phenomenology imitating Edmund Husserl, which served both his proto-existentialism (prior to Martin Heidegger's), and his realist historicism, which has been compared to both Wilhelm Dilthey and Benedetto Croce. José Ortega y Gasset was born 9 May 1883 in Madrid.

Pivotal Works & Achievements

His father was director of the newspaper El Imparcial, which belonged to the family of his mother, Dolores Gasset. The family was definitively of Spain's end-of-the-century liberal and educated bourgeoisie. The liberal tradition and journalistic engagement of his family had a profound influence in Ortega y Gasset's activism in politics. Ortega was first schooled by the Jesuit priests of St. Stanislaus Kostka College, Málaga, Málaga (1891–1897).

Enduring Legacy & Impact

He attended...

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