Cervantes: La imagen de su vida

March 15, 2016 In this lecture, structured in three parts, Javier Gomá first defines what is generally understood by a person's "life image." He then proceeds to draw a picture of Cervantes's life from his own literary works and the self-presentations he made in his prologues, concluding that the essential and distinctive elements of Cervantes's life image are composed of three things: idealism, courtesy, and humor. Finally, he will explore whether, and how, this image can be a positive, and especially cohesive, influence on the current state of culture. Javier Gomá Lanzón holds degrees in Classical Philology and Law, as well as a doctorate in Philosophy. He is the author of the books Imitation and Experience (2003), Achilles in the Gynaeceum, or Learning to Be Mortal (2007), Public Exemplarity (2009), and Necessary but Impossible (2013), and more recently, with Carlos García Gual and Fernando Savater, Many Congratulations. A regular contributor to various media outlets, in 2004 he received the National Literature Prize in the Essay category.