Introduction. Lior Rabi. José Ortega y Gasset is the most prominent Spanish philosopher in the 20 th century.

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1 The Thought of José Ortega y Gasset: History, Politics and Philosophy Introduction Lior Rabi José Ortega y Gasset is the most prominent Spanish philosopher in the 20 th century. In this dissertation, we will focus on the relationship between the political events in Spain during Ortega's time and the evolution of his political and philosophical thinking. This research is a research in "intellectual history". Hence, we will examine the relationship between the political and philosophical thinking of Ortega in relation to the historical context of those years. We will follow the changes in Ortega's political and philosophical thinking and try to realize how and if the contemporary historical events influenced the articulation of his political ideas or philosophical thought. We will examine the relationship between the evolution Ortega's political and philosophical thought in relation to the violent events in Barcelona and the arrival of the dictatorial regime in For this purpose, we have to answer a series of questions: Is it possible to contend that Ortega's philosophical thought influenced the articulation of his political opinions? Can we rather assert that the political and social events in Spain influenced the way in which Ortega's philosophical thinking took shape? When did Ortega's philosophical thinking influence his political ideas? When did Ortega's philosophical ideas influence his political worldview? Is there any main principle that characterizes Ortega's political thinking? Understanding the relationship between ideology and philosophy in Ortega's thought is the most important task of this dissertation. Furthermore, we will try to trace the influences of the philosophy of Friedrich Nietzsche and Georg Simmel on Ortega's thought. Unfortunately, the current historiography focused mainly and almost exclusively on the influence of Hermann Cohen, Edmund Husserl and Martin

2 Heidegger on Ortega's thought. 1 This research tries to acknowledge the importance of Nietzsche and Simmel's philosophical or political ideas for the evolution of Ortega's philosophical thinking. Understanding Nietzsche's influence will help us to reevaluate Ortega's cultural elitism, his idea of vitality, his theory about the infinity of the world's perspectives and the idea of "vital reason" (razón vital). In order to become acquainted with Simmel's influence on Ortega's ideas, we will try to rethink how the latter interpreted Nietzsche's political and moral ideas. Moreover, we will see how Simmel's book Goethe influenced the origins of Ortega's idea of vocation (vocación). Finally, we will try to learn how Simmel's approach towards the objectives of philosophy and natural sciences influenced Ortega's definition of the objectives of philosophy. Hence, history, politics and philosophy and their mutual connections during the evolvement of Ortega's thought is the main purpose of this dissertation. In 1905 Ortega began his studies at the University of Berlin and became acquainted with the ideas of Georg Simmel and Alois Riehl. In 1906 he began his studies of the neo-kantian philosophy of Hermann Cohen and Paul Natorp at the University of Marburg. Ortega began his studies at the German universities in order to find an alternative to the spiritual and mystical ideas that were very popular among the Spaniards under the guidance of the intellectuals of the generation of 1898: "la generación del 98". His study of the neo-kantian philosophy strengthened his previous impressions and he felt that he needs to introduce those ideas to the Spanish people: intellectuals, politicians and citizens. Ortega asserted that science, philosophy and human reason must replace the mystical and spiritual attitudes of the Spaniards. Pedro Cerezo galán, La voluntad de aventura. Aproximamiento crítico al pensamiento de Ortega y Gasset (Barcelona: Ariel, 1984) Javier San Martín, Fenomenología y cultura en Ortega (Madrid: Tecnos, 1998) Antonio Regalado García, El laberinto de la razón: Ortega y Heidegger (Madrid: Alianza Editorial, 1990) 1

3 During those years it was the necessity to find a respectful alternative to the mystical discourse of the Spanish intellectuals that influenced his decision to study at the University of Marburg. His philosophical ideas were influenced by his political understanding. In 1914 Ortega published his first philosophical book and criticized the "critical idealism" (kritische Idealismus) of the Marburg School. In this dissertation, we try to understand the sources of this change in his philosophical thought. In his "Prólogo para alemanes" from the year 1934 Ortega asserted that the influence of Husserl's philosophy and his long studies of the neo-kantian philosophy were responsible for the presentation of his severe critique of the scientific idealism of the Marburg School. Other researchers, like Pedro Cerezo and San Martín, also argued that Ortega's new philosophy was influenced by the ideas of Husserl. We will see how Ortega's growing lack of confidence in the political ideas of the neo-kantians caused him already in September 1912 to present a different political agenda for the Spanish nation. Instead of the idealistic socialism of his teacher from Marburg University, Ortega stressed the importance of the circumstances of every social reality and the acknowledgment of the unconscious feeling of the Spanish civilians. In 1914, like in the years of his youth, it was the influence of the political reality and the change in his political agenda for Spain that guided the articulation of his new philosophy. In his first philosophical book Ortega stressed the importance of the human circumstances: "yo soy yo y mi circunsctancia". His new philosophical thought centered on the concept of human life and therefore could have been interpreted as similar to other philosophical theories like Nietzsche's perspectives theory or Simmel's relativist theory. Ortega's main effort was to prevent any identification between his ideas and other philosophical ideas such as psychologism, relativism and

4 skepticism. During Ortega tried to crystallize his philosophical thought and to find an alternative to the traditional separation between idealism and realism. It was his philosophical interest to find a philosophical alternative to the historical philosophical separation between idealism and realism that guided his thought. The philosophical thought of Ortega during those two years was motivated by his pure philosophical aspirations. In 1916, Ortega presented so significant change in his philosophy that it was only in 1924 that he felt that he needs to revise his philosophical definitions. In 1924 he asserted that the process of the human cognition is not determined by the biological processes of the human body. The use of our human cognition is the only correct method that can allow us to know reality. Therefore, intuition cannot allow us to approach towards some immediate data (like Bergson contended). Only in the year 1924, seven years after the articulation of his philosophy, Ortega felt that it is important to revise his previous and consistent use of psychological definitions. Until 1924 the physiological definitions used him in order to refer to the importance of the human circumstances. The rise of racism, fascism and nationalism in Europe during the 20 th and the appearance of the dictatorship in Spain in 1923 influenced the articulation of Ortega's philosophical ideas in The political atmosphere made him feel that he needs to stress the differences between his philosophical ideas and the political ideas of the time; therefore in 1924 he tried to rearticulate his idea of vitality. Ortega felt that his idea of vitality can seem to his readers as if his philosophy is similar to other theories regarding the organic character of the nation. Therefore, his main effort in 1924 was to revise his previous physiological definitions. In 1927 the book "Being and Time" of Heidegger was published in Germany. The appearance of this book influenced the articulation of Ortega's philosophical thinking.

5 He assimilated the new philosophical definitions of Heidegger and tried to explain the major significance of this new theory to the history of philosophy. Ortega's philosophical ideas in those years were influenced by his intention to stress the priority of his philosophy from 1914 in relation to the new philosophy of Heidegger. In 1929, the philosophical change in Ortega's philosophical thought was not influenced by the historical events.