Abstract

When Husserl declared the crisis of European sciences, philosophy and the humanities were forced to redefine themselves and seek new ways to learn about the world. This meant the beginning of phenomenology and hermeneutics. Nevertheless, looking back in history we find some earlier protests against the dictatorship of reason in the history of philosophy, especially in Italy and Spain. This paper will study the evolution of a different philosophical tradition within the history of Spanish literature. I will argue that the philosophical tradition in Spain is the predecessor of some of the later European traditions. Dating back to Baltasar Gracián (17th century) the philosophical tradition in Spain has evolved in close proximity with literature which has allowed it to become artistic and creative. I will rely on three examples from the Spanish history of literature (Baltasar Gracián, Diego de Torres Villarroel and Miguel de Unamuno) in my definition of a Spanish philosophical tradition which evolves as an artistic and imaginary discipline rather than as a rational one.