It is remarkably appropriate that this work on aesthetics should have been written by George Santayana, who is probably the most brilliant philosophic writer and the philosopher with the strongest sense of beauty since Plato. It is not a dry metaphysical treatise, as works on aesthetics so often are, but is itself a fascinating document: as much a revelation of the beauty of language as of the concept of beauty. This unabridged reproduction of the...

As the First World War raged, Santayana cast a suspicious eye on German philosophy. Finding something sinister, hollow, and aggressive amidst its genius, he nevertheless describes for the general reader the ideas of Goethe, Kant, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche, and others-and does so with relative objectivity.

"I am no specialist in the study of Lucretius, I am not a Dante scholar nor a Goethe scholar....My excuse for writing about them, notwithstanding, is merely the human excuse which every new poet has for writing about the spring. They have attracted me, they have moved me to reflection, they have revealed to me certain aspects of nature and of philosophy which I am prompted by mere sincerity to express, if anybody seems interested or willing to listen." The...

In 1900, Santayana's assault on conventional pieties outraged contemporaries like William James. This first work of prose criticism asserts that "poetry is called religion when it intervenes in life, and religion, when it merely supervenes upon life, is seen to be nothing but poetry." Santayana's ideas continue to influence debates over science and religion.

George Santayana (Madrid,1863-Roma,1952) fue poeta, novelista de éxito internacional, crítico literario y observador cosmopolita. Combinó el acatamiento riguroso a la materia con la aspiración al espíritu, la tradición con la autotrascendencia, distanciándose en todo momento de la angustia y de la desesperación que caracterizaron el pensamiento de sus contemporáneos. Una antología del espíritu reúne un conjunto de textos heterogéneos...

Published in 1920, this collection of essays and lectures features Santayana's impressions of American national character. He discusses topics, such as morality, academia, materialism, idealism, and liberty—as well as people, such as William James and Josiah Royce. "There is much forgetfulness," he writes in his preface, "much callow disrespect for what is past or alien; but there is a fund of vigour, goodness, and hope."

George Santayana's renowned work of moral philosophy outlines his vision of the ideal life. Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it. George Santayana's The Life of Reason stands as one of the most influential and beautifully written works of philosophical naturalism. In it, Santayana articulates his vision of human progression from chaos to reason and the pursuit of the ideal life. Focusing his thought on the lived experiences...

In Reason in Art, Santayana explores the social and psychological origins of art. He examines its moral and ideal functions, its lapses into tastelessness, and the distinctive character of music, speech, poetry, and prose. The Spanish-born philosopher sees art as part of the broader human context, concluding that art prepares "the world to receive the soul and the soul to master the world."