What Is Philosophy?

This manuscript of a public lecture series given by Ortega will reveal in a wonderfully readable and simple way the core insights of modern philosophy of Being (he uses Life) and phenomenological ontology as explored by Heidegger (they studied with the same scholars interested in Descartes and phenomenological method at Marburg, Ortega some years prior yo Heidegger). But reading Ortega is like seeing a clear alpine lake in comparison to Heidegger’s dark, brooding Germanic muddiness.Once you understand the insights on tap, you’ll understand why this type of thinking represents a radical break from all prior metaphysical philosophies, and why it defines perhaps the essential philosophical thought that evaded thinkers for centuries. Truly a wonderful book I cherish greatly!

Ortega y Gasset presents some interesting ideas; unfortunately his presentation of them is not particularly clear, nor does it build well from one thought to the next. The reason for this is that the contents of this book were not intended by him to be presented in written form, but rather to be left as he originally presented them, as a series of lectures. When reading the book, you can see the effects of the book's original form: rambling passages one would expect of a professor lecturing; asides that don't directly relate to the subject at hand; and a general lack of editing to make the points in the book clear.So, while this book contains some interesting ideas, when buying it, be aware that you will have to wade through a lot of irrelevant data to boil them down.

In this book of essays, the great conservative philosopher from Spain exposes his theory of "vitalism". His main line of argument is that what really exists, what we truly are able to know it's there, is life. Not the I, not thought, nor matter, but life. Hence, the central problem of philosophy is the nature and essence of life: what it is, where it comes from, where it leads, how to cope with it. The whole idea is that philosophy should not be an eternal and circular reflection on abstract thoughts, but a well-ordered system of thought that enables us humans to live better, to understand better life and all that it is filled with. Caution: Ortega never argues in favor of a vulgar popularization or a cheapening of philosophy. He only tries to give the message that philosophy is for the living, for the common people (as individuals connected to community, but never as masses, cfr. "The revolt of the masses").Philosophy, then, must be connected to real experience. The philosopher must come out of the Ivory Tower, and experience life in the streets. Otherwise, philosophy will remain an abstruse and esoteric matter, only for those initiated, and that philosophy is not much useful. As with other thinkers, Ortega is overlooked for not being included in the Anglo-Saxon canon, but I think his work is one of the most alive and meaningful of all philosophy. It does have a message for people living at the beginning of the 21 century, and it would be worthwhile to read or re-read his, by the way, extremely clear and sraightforward voice. Ortega is not a Nietzsche musing upon disordered dreams of supermen (although he elaborates on this very philosopher). His is a well-thought, systematic and clear view of the world, and that makes it a very readable work.