Each religion, by the help of more or less myth, which it takes more or less seriously, proposes some method of fortifying the human soul and enabling it to make its peace with its destiny.

Man of letters

Santayana's one novel The Last Puritan is a bildungsroman—that is a novel that centers on the personal growth of the protagonist. He had saved money and been aided by a legacy from his mother. While his writings on technical philosophy can be difficult his other writings are far more accessible and pithy.

At the age of forty-eight Santayana left his position at Harvard and returned to Europe permanently never to return to the United States. ". He said that he stood in philosophy "exactly where [he stood] in daily life.