JAVIER PRADO Y UGARTECHE: BIOGRAPHY, THOUGHTS AND WORKS - CULTURE VOCABULARY - 2024

Javier Prado y Ugarteche (1871-1921) was a prominent Peruvian historian, philosopher, and lawyer. His thought, character and studies allowed him to have a very active political and diplomatic life, which is why he held various positions in his country.

The importance of this character for the history of Peru was so great that the second longest avenue in Lima bears his name. It is a road artery that runs through eight metropolitan districts.

It is important to note that his legacy goes beyond a street. It also marked a milestone within the exercise of government, since it raised and incorporated positivist ideas advanced for its time and that evolved over time.

Biography

Family

Javier Prado y Ugarteche was born in Lima, Peru, on December 3, 1871. He was the son of the military man Mariano Ignacio Prado and Magdalena Ugarteche and Gutiérrez de Cossío. Their surnames reveal their origin related to two of the most important families in the region during the 20th century.

The prestige did not remain only in his parents and in himself, since his siblings include former Peruvian president Manuel Prado and Urgateche, businessman Mariano Ignacio Prado y Ugarteche, also politician and diplomat Jorge Prado, and war hero Leoncio Meadow.

Education

His first studies were at the College of the Immaculate. Later she entered the Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos, an institution from which she graduated with a bachelor's degree in Jurisprudence after approving her thesis in which she developed the implications of the positive method within criminal law.

Learning was always very important for Prado and Ugarteche, which is why he continued to train. In 1891 he was already a Doctor of Letters, a title he obtained with his academic work The Evolution of the Philosophical Idea in History. Three years later he graduated as a doctor of jurisprudence.

Academic life

During their first years of work, Prado y Ugarteche devoted himself to teaching. First, he taught Spanish Literature at the School of Letters at the Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos.

Subsequently, this repertoire was joined by other chairs such as Modern Philosophy, Aesthetics and Art History. These classes were taught in various faculties.

The peak in his career as a teacher came when he became first dean of the Faculty of Letters and then rector of his alma mater, a position he held for five years, an exercise that gave him the nickname of the "teacher of youth."

In addition, he founded the museums of Archeology and Anthropology and Natural History, as well as the Historical Institute of Peru and the Peruvian Academy of the Language.

Political life

The Prado and Ugarteche family were very involved in Peruvian politics between the 19th and 20th centuries; Javier was no exception. He held various positions as a member of the Civil Party, an organization of which he became president.

Between 1904 and 1905 he served as minister in the Republic of Argentina. The following year he held the position of Minister of Foreign Affairs, and later held the positions of President of the Council of Ministers and Minister of Government in 1910.

He served as senator for the department of Lima from 1907 to 1913, and between 1908 and 1912 he presided over the Diplomatic Commission of the Parliament.

He is also recognized for his role as an organizer in the coup against President Guillermo Billinghurst, which occurred in February 1914.

His work as a senator was so arduous that he was reelected in 1919. That same year he directed the Constitution Commission, for which he participated in the construction of the Magna Carta of 1919. He was also a member of the Supreme Court of the Republic of his country.

Death

This Peruvian character died on June 25, 1921 when he was 49 years old. Little was known about his death and it is part of one of the mysteries of the Prado empire, since there were several versions and speculations about the fact.

Thought

The thought of this illustrious man was divided into two great moments: the positivist era and the post-positivist era.

Positivist era

Like many politicians of his time, Javier Prado y Ugarteche leaned towards the positivist current. The ideas that knowledge is based on observation and experimentation took hold of the Peruvian.

This lawyer did not conceive that the truth was absolute and that it did not vary over time, a belief that made him trust evolution as the answer not only to natural processes, but also to humans.

However, he acquired the negative dogma of racism to build a new morality, something that he defined as necessary to "renew our blood by crossing with other races."

Post-positivist era

Later he redefined his thinking and came up with more spiritual theories. In his works he reflected how human behavior is due to a relationship between the physical and the moral.

He determined that the spirit is what governs the human being. However, he indicated that there is an inheritance factor that conditions man's behavior and makes him look like his equals. From this explanation the term "national character" arose.

From his philosophical analysis and his concern between the relationship of human will and action, he defined eight kinds of morals: religious, intellectualist, rationalist, Kantian, empirical, sentiment, utilitarian of qualitative value, and positivist and naturalistic.

In addition, he introduced the concept of collective psychology as a method to promote, from education, an awareness that fostered the spirit of new generations and made Peru advance to a more democratic society.

Plays

During his career, Javier Prado y Ugarteche published several works and treatises, most of them dedicated to the analysis of philosophy and anthropology and their impact on Peru.

Among his works the following stand out:

- The positive method in Criminal Law, in 1890.

- The genius, in 1888.

-Social State of Peru during the Spanish domination, in the years 1894 and 1941.

- The new era and the historical destinies of the United States, in 1919.

- The evolution of the philosophical idea in history, in 1891.

- National education, in 1899.

-The problem of education, in 1915.

References

1. "Biography of Javier Prado Ugarteche" at the Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos. Retrieved on October 5, 2018 from the Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos: unmsm.edu.pe
2. "Javier Prado and Ugarteche" in History of Peru. Retrieved on October 5, 2018 from History of Peru: historiaperuana.pe
3. "Javier Prado y Ugarteche" in Academic. Retrieved on October 5, 2018 from Academic: esacademic.com
4. Negreiros, M. "Javier Prado Ugarteche" in Academia. Retrieved October 5, 2018 from Academia: academia.edu
5. "Javier Prado" in Biographies of. Retrieved October 5, 2018 from Biographies of: biografias-de.com