Traits of «Lebensphilosophie» in the Thought of María Zambrano

Abstract

The article analyses the common points between the thought of María Zambrano and the so called «Lebensphilosophie», a concept that brings together different philosophical trends emerged in Germany and France in the nineteenth century, and among whose most prominent representatives in Spain were Unamuno and Ortega y Gasset. Some of the traits of «Lebensphilosophie» can also be found in Maria Zambrano, particularly in some of her central categories of thought. The first part of this work addresses this issue; the second part focuses on her notion of piety, which is defined in her work as a knowledge referred to a specific vision of reality, of what is different and of mystery. The author deciphers the meaning of piety according to her notion through repeated references to the legacy of an expanded religious worldview. In this display, a close relationship with some of the main motivations and intellectual concerns of «Lebensphilosophie» is revealed.