Alfonso Reyes’ Moral Primer. Brief Lessons: wise men’s precepts

Abstract

Alfonso Reyes wrote the Moral Primer in 1944, from the orientation of the wisdom literature and at the invitation of the Secretary of Public Education of Mexico, Jaime Torres Bodet. Divided into twelve short lessons that include two other synthesis lessons, the Primer raises some of the most traditional problems in ethical philosophy based on moral practices: good and evil, the relationship between body and soul, conscience, the moral value and will, civilization and culture. It also presents practical wisdom advice on the respect that each human being owes to himself, to the family, to society, to the law, to the right, to the homeland, to the human species, and to nature. In order to better understand the Moral Primer, it is essential to know the historical circumstances in which Mexico and Alfonso Reyes were in 1944; the political and educational contexts at the time of writing.

Keywords

• moral primer
• alfonso reyes
• education
• pedagogy
• mexico