Social upheaval in early 20th-century Europe is the historical setting for this seminal study by the Spanish philosopher, José Ortega y Gasset. Continuously in print since 1932, Ortega's vision of Western culture as sinking to its lowest common denominator and drifting toward chaos brought its author international fame and has remained one of the influential books of the 20th century.

Text: English, Spanish (translation) .

José Ortega y Gasset (9 May 1883 – 18 October 1955) was a Spanish liberal philosopher and essayist working at the beginning of the 20th century while Spain oscillated between monarchy, republicanism and dictatorship. He was the main exponent of the theory of perspectivism.

奥特加·伊·加塞特是二十世纪西班牙最伟大的思想家之一,于文学和哲学皆有深厚造诣,他的思想和政治理念影响了西班牙的知识分子,有人将他誉为西班牙的陀斯妥也夫斯基,而法国存在主义作家加缪则称他为继尼采之后欧洲最伟大的作家。加塞特还是现象学传播史上至关重要的人物。