Look, if you're going to insist on knowing things, you could do worse than this. But don't expect a hagiography. The universe doesn't hand those out, and neither do I.
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In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Fernández-Savater and the second or maternal family name is Martín. A tidy system for cataloging people. Let's see if the contents live up to the label.
Fernando Savater
| Portrait of Spanish philosopher Fernando Savater for the magazine Jot Down |
|---|
| Born |
| Fernando Fernández-Savater Martín |
| (1947-06-21) 21 June 1947 (age 78) |
| San Sebastián, Basque Country, Spain |
| Education |
| • Alma mater |
| Universidad Complutense de Madrid |
| Website |
| fernandosavater.com |
Fernando Fernández-Savater Martín, born on the 21st of June, 1947, in the perpetually conflicted Basque city of San Sebastián, is a Spanish philosopher, essayist, and author. He has spent a lifetime wrestling with ideas in a country that often prefers the comfort of tradition. He writes, he speaks, he argues—a relentless intellectual engine in a world running on fumes.
Early years and career
Born in San Sebastián, Savater's career began in the academic trenches. He served as a professor of Ethics at the University of the Basque Country for over a decade, a particularly... interesting choice of subject and location given the political climate. Teaching morality while surrounded by violent separatism is a task that requires either immense optimism or a profound sense of irony. One suspects Savater possesses the latter in spades. He is currently a professor of Philosophy at the Complutense University of Madrid, a more central stage for his particular brand of intellectual performance.
His literary output is prolific, almost defiant. He has been decorated with several accolades, shiny markers of approval for a body of work that pokes and prods at the tender spots of the modern conscience. His writing navigates the treacherous waters of contemporary ethics, politics, the flickering shadows of cinema, and the dense forests of literary studies. He doesn't just write; he dissects.
In 1990, as if not busy enough, Savater, alongside the columnist and publisher Javier Pradera, founded the magazine Claves de Razón Práctica. The title, translating to "Keys of Practical Reason," is a statement of intent—an attempt to provide tools for thinking in an era that increasingly encourages the opposite.
His efforts did not go unnoticed. In November 2012, he was awarded the prestigious Octavio Paz Prize of Poetry and Essay, a recognition that places him in a lineage of thinkers who refuse to let language become a blunt instrument.
That same year, 2012, saw him take the helm as Editor in Chief of "Claves de razón práctica" starting with issue 222 (May–June 2012). It marked a new era for the publication, a continuation of the cultural crusade started by Javier Pradera in 1990. Savater assembled an editorial board that reads like a who's who of Spanish intellectual life: Basilio Baltasar, Francisco Calvo Serraller, Joaquín Estefanía, Carlos García Gual, Santos Juliá, and José María Ridao. A collection of minds tasked with the Sisyphean labor of promoting critical thought.
Political activism
A philosopher who remains in his ivory tower is merely a collector of ideas. Savater has never been one for collecting dust. He waded into the murky, turbulent waters of Spanish politics by co-founding a political party, the now-disbanded Unión, progreso y democracia (in English, Union, Progress and Democracy, or UPyD). He was not alone in this venture, joined by figures like the former socialist MP Rosa Díez, the provocateur Albert Boadella, and the literary giant Mario Vargas Llosa. Their stated goal was a direct confrontation with the various nationalist movements fragmenting Spanish politics—a stand against tribalism in favor of a unified, secular state. A noble goal, and we all know how the world treats those.
His political trajectory continued to court controversy. Savater was among the intellectuals and politicians who endorsed the 2012 manifesto of the "reconversion.es" platform. This platform advocated for a recentralization of the Spanish state, a position seen by some as a necessary corrective and by others as a precursor to the hard-right nationalism of political parties like Vox. In 2018, he lent his name to another manifesto, this one promoted by the Francisco Franco National Foundation. Titled Manifiesto por la historia y la libertad, it took a critical stance against Spain's Law of Historical Memory, arguing against what its signatories perceived as a politically motivated rewriting of the past. It seems even philosophers can't resist a good argument about history.
His activism has been most pronounced, and perhaps most personal, in his native Basque Country. He has been a fixture in organizations dedicated to peace and staunchly opposed to the terrorism of ETA and the exclusionary logic of Basque nationalism. His name is linked to groups like Movimiento por la Paz y la No Violencia, Gesto por la Paz, Foro Ermua, and, most notably, ¡Basta Ya! ("Enough is Enough!"). These were not comfortable affiliations; they were acts of public courage in a place and time where such stances could get you killed.
Personal life
Beyond the page and the podium, Savater is a known quantity in Spanish culture. He is a skilled philosophy popularizer, capable of translating dense concepts for a public that might otherwise not bother—a TV host, a sought-after lecturer, and a constant voice of political activism.
He describes his own worldview with a certain precision. He is an agnostic, which is the most intellectually honest position for anyone who has paid attention to the universe's stunning indifference. He is a self-professed anglophile, an affection for a culture of pragmatism and eccentricity. Above all, he identifies as a defender of the Enlightenment, a modern-day disciple in the tradition of Voltaire. To champion reason, skepticism, and individual liberty in the 21st century is to willingly sign up for a losing battle. It's a testament to his character that he continues to fight it.
Bibliography
A monument to a mind that refuses to be quiet, his bibliography reads like a sustained argument with the 20th and 21st centuries.
- Nihilismo y acción (Nihilism and Action) (1970)
- Ensayo sobre Cioran (Essay on Cioran) (1974)
- Panfleto contra el Todo (A Proclamation against Everything) (1978)
- Criaturas del aire (1979)
- Caronte aguarda (Charon Awaits) (1981)
- La tarea del héroe (The Task of the Hero) (1981)
- Invitación a la ética (An Invitation to Ethics) (1982)
- La infancia recuperada (Childhood Recovered) (1983)
- Sobre vivir (On Living - and Surviving) (1983)
- Las razones del antimilitarismo y otras razones (The Reasons for Antimilitarism and Other Reasons) (1984)
- El contenido de la felicidad (The Contents of Happiness) (1986)
- Ética como amor propio (Ethics as Self-Esteem) (1988)
- Ética para Amador (Ethics for Amador) (1991)
- Política para Amador (Politics for Amador) (1992)
- Sin contemplaciones (Straight Talk) (1993)
- El jardín de las dudas (Garden of Doubts) (1993)
- Despierta y lee (Wake Up and Read) (1998)
- Las preguntas de la vida (The Questions of Life) (1999)
- Perdonen las molestias (Sorry for Disturbing) (2001)
- El Gran Laberinto (The Great Labyrinth) (2005)
- Ética de Urgencia (Importunate Ethics) (2012)