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THERE is one fact which, whether for good or ill, is of utmost importance in the public life of Europe at the present moment. Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
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What is the subject of this book?. Well, the subject is the advent to power in Europe of what he calls the mass-men, who, according to him, are characterized by being just like everybody else. The mass-men have always existed, but whereas in the past they allowed the men of excellence to direct society, now they claim all the power. Ortega y Gasset says that what is new is that "the commonplace mind, knowing itself to be commonplace, has the assurance to proclaim the rights of the commonplace and to impose them wherever it will". Thus, the mass-men claim that everything that is different needs to be crushed: uniformity is good, all else should be suppressed.
But are the mass-men capable of leading society?. According to the author, they are not. He displays an enormous amount of elitism when he affirms that the culture of the mass-man isn't true culture, because there isn't culture where there are no standards to which anybody can make an appeal. He gives an example of the modern mass-man when he points out what was happening then under Fascism, due to the fact that "there appears for the first time in Europe a type of man who does not want to give reasons or to be right, but simply shows himself resolved to impose his opinions".
Ortega says that the way the mass-man behaves in public life arises from his psychological structure. Each mass-man considers "his moral and intellectual endowment as excellent, complete". As a result, he doesn't listen to others, and will try to impose his point of view on everything. Does that sound familiar to you?. Ortega was talking about something that was happening in the 1930's, but...couldn't what he said also be applied to some of the things that happen nowadays?.
I really liked this book, despite the fact that I certainly do not agree with everything that the author wrote. For example, I think that everybody can learn if they want to do so, and that elitism isn't the way to change things. However, I think that Ortega noticed a danger that was present in his society, and that we still have in ours: lack of communication, and a tendence to impose opinions on others. In this review I have only made a few remarks regarding some of the points Ortega y Gasset discusses in "The revolt of the masses". Notwithstanding that, you will find that he talks about much more.
All in all, I highly recommend "The revolt of the masses"... You might not agree with the author, but you need to read the book :)
Belen Alcat
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