Ortega, Tocqueville, and the Historical Understanding of Society

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.63487/reo.517

Keywords:

Ortega y Gasset, Tocqueville, society, history, culture, freedom, beliefs, moeurs

Abstract

The present paper studies the coincidence in form and substance of Tocqueville’s and Ortega’s thought. Above all, it stresses the importance of the cultural context for the understanding of the nature and workings of specifically political institutions. Both authors value individual liberty which they see as menaced by the process of socialization inherent to modernity.

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Author Biographies

Jaime de Salas, Universidad Complutense de Madrid

Born in London. Professor of Philosophy at the Complutense University. He is the author of numerous research papers and translations, focusing particularly on Leibniz, Hume, and Ortega; among his works, Reason and Legitimacy in Leibniz: An Interpretation from Ortega (1994) stands out.

Isabel Ferreiro Lavedán, Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia

She holds a Ph.D. in Law and is a professor of legal theory at the UNED. A member of the research and editorial team for the new Complete Works of José Ortega y Gasset (2004–2010), she is the author of the book The Social Theory of Ortega y Gasset (2005) and of several articles, including “The Idealism of Romantic Love” (Revista de Occidente, 2007). She has been a columnist for the online newspaper El Imparcial since its inception.

References

BLOOM, A. (1990): “Rousseau: The turning point”, en Allan BLOOM (ed.), Confronting the Constitution. Washington: AEI Press.

DÍEZ DEL CORRAL, L. (1989): El pensamiento político de Tocqueville. Madrid: Alianza Editorial.

ELSTER, J. (2009): Alexis de Tocqueville. The first social scientist. Cambridge University Press.

ORTEGA Y GASSET, J. (2004): Obras completas. Tomo II (1916). Madrid: Fundación José Ortega y Gasset/Taurus.

— (2005): Obras completas. Tomo III (1917-1925). Madrid: Fundación José Ortega y Gasset / Taurus.

— (2006): Obras completas. Tomo V (1932-1940). Madrid: Fundación José Ortega y Gasset / Taurus.

— (2006): Obras completas. Tomo VI (1941-1955). Madrid: Fundación José Ortega y Gasset / Taurus.

— (2007): Obras completas. Obra póstuma. Tomo VII (1902-1925). Madrid: Fundación José Ortega y Gasset / Taurus.

TOCQUEVILE, A. (1990). De la démocratie en Amérique, ed. de Eduardo NOLLA VRIN: París, 1990.

VILLAVERDE, M. J. (2005): “La democracia en América: bicentenario de Tocqueville”, El País, 26-XII-2005.

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Published

2010-05-01 — Updated on 2010-05-01

How to Cite

de Salas, J., & Ferreiro Lavedán, I. (2010). Ortega, Tocqueville, and the Historical Understanding of Society. Revista De Estudios Orteguianos (Journal of Orteguian Studies), (20), 179–192. https://doi.org/10.63487/reo.517

Issue

No. 20 (2010)

Section

Articles