1922 Encyclopædia Britannica/Croce, Benedetto

CROCE, BENEDETTO (1866-      ), Italian philosopher and statesman, was born at Pescasseroli, in the province of Aquila, Italy, Feb. 25 1866. He came of a family that counted among its members several jurists and magistrates. Born in the part of Italy formerly known as Greater Greece, it may be said of him without paradox that the development of his mind and character represented a modern incarnation of all that was subtle and profound in the Hellenic genius, linked with the best and wisest tradition of Roman civilization and of the Christianity that came to take its place. From the remote township of his birth, however, the branch of the family to which the philosopher belonged transferred itself soon afterwards to Naples, so that, like his predecessor Vico, Benedetto Croce may be correctly described as a Neapolitan. He studied at Rome and in Naples, afterwards adopting the life of an independent student and occupying himself especially with literary and with Neapolitan history. Much of his work that bears upon that period of youth is to be found in the volumes: La Rivoluzione Napoletana del 1799; Saggi sulla letteratura italiana del Seicento; La Spagna nella vita italiana durante la rinascenza; Storie e leggende napoletane. But Croce did not altogether neglect philosophy at this period. Towards his thirtieth year the study of philosophy and of history together occupied most of his attention. His principal works are contained in four volumes comprised under the general title Filosofia dello spirito: (1) Estetica come scienza dell' espressione e linguistica generale, (2) Logica come scienza del concetto puro, (3) Filosofia della practica: economia ed etica and (4) Teoria e storia della storiografia. These were published between 1902 and 1913. With these may be mentioned certain volumes of essays, among which are to be noted those upon Historical Materialism and Marxist Economy (1896-1900); upon Hegel (1905); upon Vico (1910); and the New Essays upon Aesthetic (1920), which complete and carry further the first Aesthetic.

Croce only took part in the administrative work of Naples upon rare occasions and in moments of crisis. During the World War he developed a polemic directed against democratic-humanitarian conceptions and particularly those of President

Wilson, whose influence on the peace settlement was regarded by him as injurious to Italy. His writings on this subject have been collected in a volume entitled Pagine sulla guerra (Naples, 1919). In June 1920, when the Giolitti Government was formed with the programme of a reconstitution of the Italian State and of radical reforms, Croce (who had bgen a senator of the Kingdom of Italy since 1920) was asked to accept the office of Minister of Public Instruction. He agreed conditionally upon his programme being carried out. This programme was based upon the idea of a liberal reconstruction: he aimed at the reduction and simplification of the State schools combined with a more rigorous method of teaching, and at affording all facilities to, and indeed inviting the competition of, private instruction, fearless of the confessional school, which in his view would be compelled to modernize itself in order to maintain competition with the State school. In 1921 he retired from office on the resignation of the Giolitti Ministry.

(D. A.; G. C.)