Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and it is shameful to surrender it too soon or to the first comer: there is nobility in preserving it coolly and proudly through long youth, until at last, in the ripeness of instinct and discretion, it can be safely exchanged for fidelity and happiness.
Although his broader legacy is largely defined by his aphorisms, Santayana was among the greatest thinkers of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. A Philosopher, poet, essayist and novelist, Santayana influenced such noted thinkers as Bertrand Russell, John Dewey and the poet Wallace Stevens.
A prolific writer, Santayana's defining work was probaby his five-volume work "The Life of Reason" which is widely considered to be one of the most poetic and well-written works of philosophy in Western history.
"Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it" is but one quote taken from the work.
This book and others by Santayana are available on line at no cost - as they are now in the public domain. Project Gutenberg has compiled the work here.
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