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35 Notable Quotes By José Ortega Y Gasset, The Great Spanish Philosopher

Famous As: Spanish Philosopher and Essayist
Born On: May 9, 1883
Died On: October 18, 1955
Born In: Madrid, Spain
Died At Age: 72
The great Spanish liberal philosopher and essayist, José Ortega y Gasset was famous for his influence on the cultural and literary renaissance of Spain in the twentieth century. He had made vivid contributions to subjects like psychology, Metaphysics and Philosophy. As a writer, ‘The Revolt of the Masses’, is considered to be his most popular work. Ortega worked on the ideas of the early twentieth century philosophers, and put them to use in his era, stating that his philosophy was based on ‘vital reason’. His philosophy was classified as the ‘Philosophy of Life’, and the lessons in his teachings made it more appealing. He had also served as a deputy for the ‘Province of León’, by being a part of the ‘Agrupación al Servicio de la Repúblic’ group. He exiled from Spain on the outbreak of the ‘Civil War’ and then returned to give lecture at the ‘Institute of Humanities’ in Madrid that he had founded. Many of his thoughts, writings, and essays have become very relevant sayings and quotes on several aspects of lifel. His works, quotations and thoughts still serve as a source of inspiration in hours of distress. Here is a collection of some of José Ortega Y Gasset's quotes!
Tell me what you pay attention to and I will tell you who you are.

Tell me what you pay attention to and I will tell you who you are.

José Ortega y Gasset
The type of human being we prefer reveals the contours of our heart.

The type of human being we prefer reveals the contours of our heart.

José Ortega y Gasset
Life is a series of collisions with the future; it is not the sum of what we have been, but what we yearn to be.

Life is a series of collisions with the future; it is not the sum of what we have been, but what we yearn to be.

José Ortega y Gasset
Living is a constant process of deciding what we are going to do.

Living is a constant process of deciding what we are going to do.

José Ortega y Gasset
Our firmest convictions are apt to be the most suspect; they mark our limitations and our bounds. Life is a petty thing unless it is moved by the indomitable urge to extend its boundaries.

Our firmest convictions are apt to be the most suspect; they mark our limitations and our bounds. Life is a petty thing unless it is moved by the indomitable urge to extend its boundaries.

José Ortega y Gasset
Romantic poses aside, let us recognize that

Romantic poses aside, let us recognize that "falling in love"...is an inferior state of mind, a form of transitory imbecility.

José Ortega y Gasset
The metaphor is probably the most fertile power possessed by man

The metaphor is probably the most fertile power possessed by man

José Ortega y Gasset
There is no doubt; even a rejection can be the shadow of a caress”.

There is no doubt; even a rejection can be the shadow of a caress”.

José Ortega y Gasset
We do not live to think, but, on the contrary, we think in order that we may succeed in surviving.

We do not live to think, but, on the contrary, we think in order that we may succeed in surviving.

José Ortega y Gasset
Thinking is the desire to gain reality by means of ideas.

Thinking is the desire to gain reality by means of ideas.

José Ortega y Gasset
The metaphor is perhaps the most fruitful power of man. Its efficacy verges on magic, and it seems a tool for creation which God forgot inside one of His creatures when He made him.

The metaphor is perhaps the most fruitful power of man. Its efficacy verges on magic, and it seems a tool for creation which God forgot inside one of His creatures when He made him.

José Ortega y Gasset
To remain in the past means to be dead.

To remain in the past means to be dead.

José Ortega y Gasset
Tragedy in the theater opens our eyes so that we can discover and appreciate the heroic in reality.

Tragedy in the theater opens our eyes so that we can discover and appreciate the heroic in reality.

José Ortega y Gasset
Every life is, more or less, a ruin among whose debris we have to discover what the person ought to have been.

Every life is, more or less, a ruin among whose debris we have to discover what the person ought to have been.

José Ortega y Gasset
I am I and my circumstance; and, if I do not save it, I do not save myself.

I am I and my circumstance; and, if I do not save it, I do not save myself.

José Ortega y Gasset
To be surprised, to wonder, is to begin to understand.

To be surprised, to wonder, is to begin to understand.

José Ortega y Gasset
The poet begins where the man ends.
The man's lot is to live his human life,
the poet's to invent what is nonexistent.

The poet begins where the man ends. The man's lot is to live his human life, the poet's to invent what is nonexistent.

José Ortega y Gasset
We fall in love when our imagination projects nonexistent perfection upon another person. One day, the fantasy evaporates and with it, love dies.

We fall in love when our imagination projects nonexistent perfection upon another person. One day, the fantasy evaporates and with it, love dies.

José Ortega y Gasset
Effort is only effort when it begins to hurt.

Effort is only effort when it begins to hurt.

José Ortega y Gasset
Persistent ill-humour is all too clear an indication that someone is living contrary to his[her] intended purpose.

Persistent ill-humour is all too clear an indication that someone is living contrary to his[her] intended purpose.

José Ortega y Gasset
There are, above all, times in which the human reality, always mobile, accelerates, and bursts into vertiginous speeds. Our time is such a one, for it is made of descent and fall.

There are, above all, times in which the human reality, always mobile, accelerates, and bursts into vertiginous speeds. Our time is such a one, for it is made of descent and fall.

José Ortega y Gasset
…falling in love is a state of mental misery which has a restricting, impoverishing, and paralyzing effect upon the development of our consciousness.

…falling in love is a state of mental misery which has a restricting, impoverishing, and paralyzing effect upon the development of our consciousness.

José Ortega y Gasset
The abstract is no more than an instrument, an organ, to see the concrete clearly.

The abstract is no more than an instrument, an organ, to see the concrete clearly.

José Ortega y Gasset
I am myself and my circumstance. I live therefore I think.

I am myself and my circumstance. I live therefore I think.

José Ortega y Gasset
The existence of language is, in a way, a continual denigration of words.

The existence of language is, in a way, a continual denigration of words.

José Ortega y Gasset
Man's real treasure is the treasure of his mistakes, piled up stone by stone through thousands of years

Man's real treasure is the treasure of his mistakes, piled up stone by stone through thousands of years

José Ortega y Gasset
Nine-tenths of that which is attributed to sexuality is the work of our magnificent ability to imagine, which is no longer an instinct, but exactly the opposite: a creation.

Nine-tenths of that which is attributed to sexuality is the work of our magnificent ability to imagine, which is no longer an instinct, but exactly the opposite: a creation.

José Ortega y Gasset
Man,then, rather than by what he he is,or by what he has,escapes the zooological scale by what he does,by his conduct.hence it is that he must always keep watch on himself.

Man,then, rather than by what he he is,or by what he has,escapes the zooological scale by what he does,by his conduct.hence it is that he must always keep watch on himself.

José Ortega y Gasset
We live at a time when man believes himself fabulously capable of creation, but he does not know what to create.

We live at a time when man believes himself fabulously capable of creation, but he does not know what to create.

José Ortega y Gasset
[...] rationalism is a form of intellectual bigotry which, in thinking about reality, tries to take it into account as little as possible.

[...] rationalism is a form of intellectual bigotry which, in thinking about reality, tries to take it into account as little as possible.

José Ortega y Gasset