The Suspension of Seriousness

"The Suspension of Seriousness" engages the Mexican philosopher Jorge Portilla (1919 1963), taking note of Portilla s philosophical methodology, insights, and contributions to our understanding of value, being, and subjectivity. Portilla lived a short, troubled life and never held a teaching appoint [...]
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"The Suspension of Seriousness" engages the Mexican philosopher Jorge Portilla (1919 1963), taking note of Portilla s philosophical methodology, insights, and contributions to our understanding of value, being, and subjectivity. Portilla lived a short, troubled life and never held a teaching appointment, but his works, though few in number, were nevertheless philosophically penetrating. He is a legendary character in the Mexican popular imagination of the 1940s and 50s, but little has been written about him or his philosophy. His posthumously published "Fenomenologia del relajo" is a phenomenological analysis of what Portilla calls relajo or the state we assume when we do not want to do what is seriously being asked of us what is demanded of us. It is, Portilla says, the suspension of seriousness. Carlos Alberto Sanchez uses Portilla s "Fenomenologia del relajo" as a point of departure to consider the dangers both of our uncritical adherence to values as well as our urge to reject values altogether. He argues that Portilla provides a framework in which to situate the modern condition, ourselves, and our future. The first authorized English translation of Portilla s "Fenomenologia del relajo" is included."