Introduction by Spartaco Pupo

This is the introduction to Giovanni Gentile’s intellectual testament, in which he revisits and reinterprets earlier themes. These themes include the relationship between the individual and society; the concept of statehood as an inalienable presupposition of social life; the primacy of ethics as a unifying force; and the significance of human character as "constancy of the will," as opposed to velleity (failed or inconclusive will). The latter is a fundamental challenge in education. The work also challenges traditional Platonic and communist conceptions of the family as an alienating entity by exploring the notion of the family as the fundamental unit of society. Additionally, Gentile delves into the concept of religion as an intrinsic aspect of the human condition, emphasizing its role in guiding moral behavior within a secular state. He perceives the state as a form of fairy-tale ideology due to the assumption that the state can exist independently of religion. Gentile introduces significant innovations in his thesis of humanism of labor, which leads to viewing labor as one of the highest manifestations of the human spirit. He also rejects economics as a mechanism understood as individualistic, hedonistic, and utilitarian. Economics cannot be resolved in ethics; otherwise, it would remain mere mathematics. A notable recent development is the emphasis on immortality, which is understood not as perpetuity, but as eternity. Immortalizing oneself requires conscious renunciation of individuality and disconnection from the self, akin to an oyster's detachment from the rock. The concept of "eternal" does not refer to the natural body or the individual but to the spirit itself. Dying is a social phenomenon, but the essence of humanity is defined by the thought that embodies the totality of humanity. Based on these assumptions, Gentile wanted to fulfill his civic duty to "future Italy" to which he was committed.