The Resume

(February 25, 1866-November 20, 1952)
Born in Pescasseroli, Italy
Philosopher, historian, and educator
Member of the Italian Senate (1910-46,1948-52)
Minister of Public Education (1920-21)
Developed 'philosophy of the spirit'
Wrote 'Aesthetic' (1902), 'What Is Living and What Is Dead of the Philosophy of Hegel' (1907), 'Logic' (1908), 'Philosophy of the Practical' (1908), 'Theory and History of Historiography' (1921), 'History as Thought and Action' (1938), and 'Politics and Morals' (1946)
President of PEN International (1949-52)

Why he might be annoying:

He studied law at the University of Naples without getting a degree.
He was initially a supporter of Benito Mussolini and the Fascists.
He was an agnostic who wrote, 'Why We Cannot Help Calling Ourselves Christians.'
He was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature sixteen times without winning.

Why he might not be annoying:

He barely survived an earthquake that killed his parents and sister (1883).
He wrote the entry for 'Aesthetics' for the 14th edition of the Encyclopedia Britannica.
He turned against Mussolini after the Fascists assassinated a socialist politician and wrote the 'Manifesto of the Anti-Fascist Intellectuals.' (1925)
He provided financial assistance to anti-fascist writers and other dissidents.
When the Mussolini regime adopted anti-Semitic policies, he was the only non-Jewish intellectual to refuse to complete a government questionnaire collecting information on the 'racial background' of prominent Italians (1938).

Credit: C. Fishel

Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

• C. Fishel's Profiles [Series 86]
• I am an Agnostic
• I Died in 1952 (Ranked: 86)
• Look at Me, I'm Reading
• Philosophers: 20th Century [1900-2000]
• Profiles 53751-54000 (Ranked: 53845)

Year In Review:

In 2022, Out of 5 Votes: 40.0% Annoying