GENTILE, GIOVANNI (1875– ), Italian philosopher and politician, was born at Castelvetrano (Trapani) on May 29, 1875. He studied literature and philosophy at the University of Palermo, and after a series of university appointments became in 1918 professor of the history of philosophy in the University of Rome. Two years later he founded the Giornale critico della filosofia italiana. Created a Senator in 1918, he supported the Fascist movement from its beginnings, and when Mussolini's Gov ernment came into power, Gentile was appointed minister of education. He was then a Liberal, but subsequently joined the Fascist party, of which he became a prominent member. As minister of education, he carried out an organic reform of the Italian educational system, impressing upon teachers the impor tance of an understanding of the development of mind and reviv ing religious teaching in the schools. For Gentile, education is a process of self-formation which should culminate in philosophy, the supreme form of self-consciousness. At this point alone do we arrive at reality, which is something given in the pure actual ity of mind. Reality is not identifiable with the ideas of individual minds, but with the pure thinking or perfect self-consciousness of the super-personal, transcendental principle in the universe which overcomes all oppositions and distinctions. In this obvious attempt to revive idealism, Gentile endeavours to reform Hegelian dialectics and often appeals to the system of Vico.
Among his numerous works, which include an edition of Bruno's writings (1907), one of Vico's works (1914) and a translation of Kant's Critique of Pure Reason (I 910), are :—La Filosofia di Marx (1899) ; Storia della filosofia italiana (1902, etc.) ; 11 modernismo (1909) ; Bernardino Telesio (I 91 I) ; 1 problemi della scolastica e it pensiero itaIfano 0913); Sommario di Pedagogia come scienza filosofica (2 vols., 1913-14) ; Teoria generale dello spirito cone atto puro (1916; 3rd ed., 1920; Eng. trans., 1922); Sistema di Logica come teorie del conoscere (1917; 2nd ed., 1918) ; 1 fondamenti della filosofia del diritto ; Le origini della filosofia contemporanea in Italia (4 vols., 1917-23) ; 11 Problemo scolastico del dopo guerre (1919) ; La Rif orma dell' educazione (1920; Eng. trans., 1923) ; Studi sul Rinascimento (1923) ; Lo Spaverto (1924) ; 11 Fascismo al governo della scuola (19 24) ; Clie cosy e it f ascismo (1925); Scritti politici See E. Chiocchetti, La filosofia di Gentile (1922) : V. La Via, L'Ideal ismo Attuale di Gentile (1925) and F. de Sarlo, Gentile e Croce (1925).