George Santayana

George Santayana (b. Jorge Agustín Nicolás Ruiz de Santayana y Borrás, December 16, 1863 – September 26, 1952), was a Spanish-American philosopher, essayist, poet, and novelist. Born in Spain, George Santayana was raised and educated in the US from the age of eight and identified as an American, yet always retained a valid Spanish passport. At the age of 48, Santayana left his academic position at Harvard University and permanently returned to Europe; his last will was to be buried in the Spanish Pantheon in the Campo di Verano, Rome.

As a philosopher, Santayana is known for aphorisms, such as "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it", "Only the dead have seen the end of war", and defined beauty as "Pleasure objectified". Although atheist, Santayana valued the culture of the Spanish Catholic values, practices, and worldview, in which he was raised. As an intellectual, George Santayana was a broad-range cultural critic in several academic disciplines. Provided by Wikipedia