In this classic study, now available in English for the first time, the late Spanish philosopher Gonzalo Fernandez de la Mora reconsiders the antithesis of pathos and logos in the political realm. In real life, he postulates, ideology has mostly undesirable effects: social tension, extremism, pugnacity, and the substitution of myths for facts. Consistent with this observation, political life in the second half of the twentieth century was ruthlessly rationalized. Opposing political programs seemed to be converging. Religion seemed to be becoming less important. Nationalism was yielding to cosmopolitanism. From a conceptual perspective, this book evaluates prevalent ideologies as members of the same class of degraded intellectual substance, debased specifically for the consumption of the masses with little or no regard for the consequences. While not all societies have regulated ideological mindsets, current events show that the causal link between ideology and social degradation is as true now as it was when Fernandez de la Mora first wrote about it and will remain so in the future.
Rezensionen / Stimmen
The most complete and sophisticated of all the intellectuals" - Stanley Payne, Professor Emeritus of History, University of Wisconsin, Madison
Sprache
Verlagsort
Zielgruppe
Produkt-Hinweis
Fadenheftung
Gewebe-Einband
Maße
Höhe: 229 mm
Breite: 152 mm
Dicke: 10 mm
Gewicht
ISBN-13
978-1-68053-410-8 (9781680534108)
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Schweitzer Klassifikation
One of Spain's most distinguished philosophers, Gonzalo Fernandez de la Mora y Mon was born in Barcelona on April 30, 1924. He graduated in law and philosophy from the University of Madrid with the highest distinction in both subjects and then entered the Spanish diplomatic corps, serving in West Germany and Greece and as head of the Diplomatic School of Spain. In 1950, he married Isabel Varela, with whom he had four children. In 1953, Fernandez de la Mora y Mon began a lengthy collaboration with the conservative monarchist daily ABC. From 1970 to 1974, he served as Spain's Minister of Public Works and later held a seat in parliament. He became a member of Spain's Royal Academy of Political and Moral Sciences in 1972. In 1983, he founded the bimonthly journal Razon Espanola, a publication devoted to the defense of a humanistic world view. He died at home on February 10, 2002.
Tom Burns (b. 1948) is a well-known journalist and essayist brought up between Britain and Spain. He graduated in Modern History from the University of Oxford and was Deputy President and Communications Director for the Recoletos Comunicacion Group. Since 1970, he has developed a distinguished career in journalism, including work in Madrid as foreign correspondent for the Financial Times, Washington Post, and Newsweek. Currently, he is a director at Eurocofin, a leading corporate communications and financial consultancy company, as well as a contributor to the Spanish newspaper El Mundo. In 2001, Burns was appointed to the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for his work promoting Spanish-British relations. He is the author of numerous books on Spanish state and society.
