Strictly speaking, the mass, as a psychological fact, can be defined without waiting for individuals to appear in mass formation. In the presence of one individual we can decide whether he is "mass" or not. The mass is all that which sets no value on itself — good or ill — based on specific grounds, but which feels itself "just like everybody," and nevertheless is not concerned about it; is, in fact, quite happy to feel itself as one with everybody else." - Meaning and context.">
Chap.I: The Coming Of The Masses
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Strictly speaking, the mass, as a psychological fact, can be defined without waiting for individuals to appear in mass formation. In the presence of one individual we can decide whether he is "mass" or not. The mass is all that which sets no value on itself — good or ill — based on specific grounds, but which feels itself "just like everybody," and nevertheless is not concerned about it; is, in fact, quite happy to feel itself as one with everybody else.

— José Ortega y Gasset

What It Means

This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "Strictly speaking, the mass, as a psychological fact, can be defined without waiting for individuals to appear in mass formation. In the presence of one individual we can decide whether he is "mass" or not. The mass is all that which sets no value on itself — good or ill — based on specific grounds, but which feels itself "just like everybody," and nevertheless is not concerned about it; is, in fact, quite happy to feel itself as one with everybody else." in the context of "Chap.I: The Coming Of The Masses" to mean that wisdom is timeless.

Source: Wikiquote: "José Ortega y Gasset" (Quotes, The Revolt of the Masses (1929): La rebelión de las masas (1929)    Also see The Revolt of the Masses) The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed January 18, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app
José Ortega y Gasset

About José Ortega y Gasset

José Ortega y Gasset (May 9 1883 – October 18 1955) was a Spanish philosopher.