Samuel Ramos Magaña, PhD (1897 – June 20, 1959), was a Mexican philosopher and writer. Ramos was born in

Zitácuaro Zitácuaro, officially known as Heroica Zitácuaro, is a city in the Mexican state of Michoacán. The city is the administrative centre for the surrounding municipality of the same name, which lies at the extreme eastern side of Michoacán and b ...

Michoacán Michoacán, formally Michoacán de Ocampo, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Michoacán de Ocampo, is one of the 31 states which, together with Mexico City, compose the Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. The stat ...

, and in 1909 entered the Colegio de San Nicolás Hidalgo (Michoacán's state university). He published his first works in the school's student publication ''Flor de Loto''. In 1915 he began to study philosophy under the tutelage of his mentor, José Torres Orozco. He spent 1915, his first year of medical school in

Morelia Morelia (; from 1545 to 1828 known as Valladolid; Otomi language, Otomi: ) is a city and municipal seat of the municipalities of Mexico, municipality of Morelia in the north-central part of the state of Michoacán in central Mexico. It is both th ...

, and his second and third years at the Military Medical School in

Mexico City Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...

. In 1919 he became part of the faculty of higher learning and taught introductory philosophy at the

National Preparatory School The Escuela Nacional Preparatoria () (ENP), the oldest senior High School system in Mexico, belonging to the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), opened its doors on February 1, 1868. It was founded by Gabino Barreda, M.D., following ...

and

logic Logic is the study of correct reasoning. It includes both formal and informal logic. Formal logic is the study of deductively valid inferences or logical truths. It examines how conclusions follow from premises based on the structure o ...

and ethics at the National Teachers School. He pursued specialized degrees at the Sorbonne, the

Collège de France The (), formerly known as the or as the ''Collège impérial'' founded in 1530 by François I, is a higher education and research establishment () in France. It is located in Paris near La Sorbonne. The has been considered to be France's most ...

, and a University in Rome. Upon his return to Mexico, he continued to teach and served in the Ministry of Public Education. In 1944 he earned his

doctorate A doctorate (from Latin ''doctor'', meaning "teacher") or doctoral degree is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism '' licentia docendi'' ("licence to teach ...

in philosophy from the

National Autonomous University of Mexico The National Autonomous University of Mexico (, UNAM) is a public university, public research university in Mexico. It has several campuses in Mexico City, and many others in various locations across Mexico, as well as a presence in nine countri ...

(UNAM) and became head of the Faculty of Philosophy and Literature there. On July 8, 1952 he began a lifelong term as a member of the prestigious Colegio Nacional.

Philosophy

His work concerns itself with the

ontology Ontology is the philosophical study of existence, being. It is traditionally understood as the subdiscipline of metaphysics focused on the most general features of reality. As one of the most fundamental concepts, being encompasses all of realit ...

of the Mexican nation. He sees the ''

pelado In Mexican society, ''pelado'' is "a term said to have been invented to describe a certain class of urban 'bum' in Mexico in the 1920s." It was used, however, much earlier. Lewis Garrard used it in his book, "Wah-to-yah and the Taos Trail," his fir ...

'', the "urban bum" of the 1920s and 1930s, as "the most elemental and clearly defined expression of national character". The

machismo Machismo (; ; ; ) is the sense of being " manly" and self-reliant, a concept associated with "a strong sense of masculine pride: an exaggerated masculinity". Machismo is a term originating in the early 1940s and 1950s and its use more wi ...

of the pelado, he argues, is the result of an

inferiority complex In psychology, an inferiority complex is a consistent feeling of inadequacy, often resulting in the belief that one is in some way deficient, or inferior, to others. According to Alfred Adler, a feeling of inferiority may be brought about by ...

(based on

Alfred Adler Alfred Adler ( ; ; 7 February 1870 – 28 May 1937) was an Austrian medical doctor, psychotherapist, and founder of the school of individual psychology. His emphasis on the importance of feelings of belonging, relationships within the family, a ...

's concept) and, since the pelado represents the entire country, the "character study" is extended to all of Mexico, and was one of the first post-

Revolutionary A revolutionary is a person who either participates in, or advocates for, a revolution. The term ''revolutionary'' can also be used as an adjective to describe something producing a major and sudden impact on society. Definition The term—bot ...

attempts to define and assess the national character.

Bibliography

*''Filosofía de la vida artística''.

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...

: Espasa-Calpe Argentina, 1950.
Philosophy of the Artistic Life
translation, 2018. *''Hacia un nuevo humanismo''. Mexico City: Fondo de Cultura Económica, 1962 (second edition). *''El perfil del hombre y la cultura en México''. Buenos Aires: Espasa-Calpe Argentina, 1952 (second edition). Translated by Earle, Peter G. as ''Profile of man and culture in Mexico''. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1962.

External links

*''Samuel Ramos; trayectoria filosófica y antología de textos''.

Monterrey Monterrey (, , abbreviated as MtY) is the capital and largest city of the northeastern Mexican state of Nuevo León. It is the ninth-largest city and the second largest metropolitan area, after Greater Mexico City. Located at the foothills of th ...

: Centro de Estudios Humanísticos de la Universidad de Nuevo León, 1965. * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ramos, Samuel 20th-century Mexican philosophers Mexican male writers Members of El Colegio Nacional (Mexico) Writers from Michoacán People from Zitácuaro National Autonomous University of Mexico alumni University of Paris alumni 1897 births 1959 deaths