I’m currently working on an essay on China, and what its rise may have to do with all this upheaval business. This is a huge topic, however, so the necessity of figuring out where to best start and what to focus in on first means it is taking me a little while.
In the meantime, I thought I’d start something new by sharing some of the better things I’ve read over the last 1-2 weeks that help to explain or elaborate on the themes I’ve been writing on, or which I’ve otherwise found especially interesting and worthwhile.
To my great pleasure, I’ve discovered that somehow I’ve ended up with a community of readers that are especially smart, well-read, and from all over the world. So I would also be genuinely interested to hear what you have all been reading, and I’m sure others here would be as well. What has helped you understand the state of the world today? Go ahead and leave a comment below.
And if for some reason you haven’t done so yet, make sure you subscribe first:
I’ll plan to makes this a series that continues every other week, as along as it’s something people enjoy. Anyway, here’s my list:
[Correction: I initially mislabeled this as an essay by Pierrick Juin; it was written by Marc Weitzmann, while Charlie Hebdo’s Juin drew the included cartoon]
Read as a follow-up to my last essay on France, this article by Marc Weitzmann provides a powerful commentary on the evolving debate over Islamism in France, and what it says about French society today. He concludes that:
There is a civil war in Islam today, a war that knows no borders, and it explains what’s been going on in France much better than any abstract debate over laïcité. What Kepel’s vision shows us, in other words, is that France’s future will be bloody.
Also, you get fun anecdotes like this one:
When they came back, Diane wore the niqab and became a pious Muslim. Back home, in her mother’s living room, she expressed her new faith status in rather unorthodox ways, like raging against her mother’s “white privilege” and against the whole Western world, which was controlled by the Jews and the Americans, and then sitting down to watch manga in silence on TV for hours. Manga, she said, were like religion, they made you forget everything, which was good preparation for war.
Like me, the novelist Paul Kingsnorth has found himself thinking about what happens when the (largely subconscious) religious foundations of a civilization – or its “sacred order” – rather suddenly erode away and disappear. Except that he’s a far more skilled writer than myself:
Your personal attitude to that ‘living faith’ is beside the point here. In one sense, whether the faith is even true is beside the point as well. The point is that when a culture built around such a sacred order dies then there will be upheaval at every level of society, from the level of politics right down to the level of the soul. The very meaning of an individual life – if there is one – will shift dramatically. The family structure, the meaning of work, moral attitudes, the very existence of morals at all, notions of good and evil, sexual mores, perspectives on everything from money to rest to work to nature to kin to responsibility to duty: everything will be up for grabs. Or as Dostoevsky has one of the Brothers Karamazov put it more pithily: ‘Without God and the future life? It means everything is permitted.’ The West, in short, was Christendom. But Christendom died. What does that make us, its descendants, living amongst its beautiful ruins? It makes ours a culture with no sacred order. And this is a dangerous place to be.
Follow Kingsnorth’s essay on the void created by the collapse of any “scared order” in society with this fascinating piece, which explores the explosive growth in popular interest in the West (especially among otherwise secular young women) in witchcraft, magic, and the occult. Lipscomb’s explanation, as a historian: “humans have always turned to magic when they feel helpless.”
Ok, this is cheating a bit, because this is actually a “podcast.” Podcast is in scare quotes here because this is really an hour-long monologue / rant that’s been re-framed into being a member of a respectable medium. And it’s great. Not many people could pull that off… but James Lindsay, co-author of the invaluable Cynical Theories can.
Here, Lindsay takes a theory by Peter Turchin, who I’ve mentioned before, on “elite overproduction” (or the tendency for decadent societies to produce far more overeducated elites than there are elite-level jobs, leading to large numbers of underemployed, resentful elite-class intellectuals who tend to start spending their free time starting revolutionary cells), and adapts it a bit. The festering problem in the West, Lindsay posits, is not the real “elites” with actual power (like Jeff Bezos), but rather all the overproduced, upper-middle class bourgeoisie “fake elites,” who find they can never be the wealthy, respected elite they aspire to be, and instead become “a breeding ground for ressentiment in society.” Horrified at the idea of ever being mere working class, but scrabbling desperately with one another for status, they have found another solution: they’ve set themselves up, not as the nobility, but as the First Estate, the new clergy, who produce essentially nothing but the “right” opinions. Now, they’ve created their own job market (e.g. critical theorists, diversity consultants) out of thin air. But, still, in this hyper-competitive world of the overproduced bourgeoisie, the surest way to move up is to take someone else down – hence “cancel culture” and the vast, elaborate, ever-changing, mandatory “correct” vocabulary, which functions as a way to help weed out any of the competition who can’t keep up.
Overall, this is an especially interesting alternative secular, class-based explanation for the ideology of the “New Faith” that relies less on the “it’s literally a new religion” argument that I still favor. As a bonus you can actually read, here are two pieces that make very similar arguments: one by Michael Lind on “The New National American Elite,” and this one, which argues that “wokeness” essentially replicates the dynamics of a medieval guild in order to artificially limit professional competition.
Honestly just outright disturbing from start to finish.
There you go, that’s my top 5 from the last two weeks. This is an open thread, so let us know something you’ve been reading that you’ve found helpful, or otherwise discuss what you’d like (just keep it civil and respectful please).
Thank you for the flattering comments to your readers ;-)
Having read too much, from Shakespeare´s sonnets to his Dark Lady to Sophocles and Marx, I stay away from one-subject-books. For me to understand our present, Mises, JB Peterson from Bible series to all strands of psychology, and an in-depth history of Western Civ are good essentials. Re-reading Genesis and Exodus and the Gospel St. John took me months and was deeply gratifying, too.
Our hybris of being smarter than our ancestors can only be cured by a solid understanding of history, for the opposite is the case.
To get a grasp of China, I found the German book "Die Chinesen" by Stefan Baron and his Chinese wife the best yet.
"The Captive Mind" by Czesław Miłosz. Here in contemporary life, fandom drama has always been a cringey rabbit hole, but for several years I've noticed a more specifically authoritarian moralistic streak in these social media arts and entertainment circles that used to have a reputation for creativity and openness. It actually gets really silly, like if somebody thinks a fantasy evil overlord is cool, they are accused of secretly having bad politics in real life(!) And it turns out these accusers are, like, 30-year-old professionals and academics, not just teenagers going through a phase. And this lack of distinction between fantasy and reality, or between the personal and political, is a major shift that has spilled into the real world. Back to the point of "The Captive Mind": it demonstrates how artists and writers and other creatives not only fall for totalitarianism like anyone else, but they are often *early adopters* of it. I reviewed the book itself on my blog.
"Vanya: A True Story" by Myrna Grant. Demonstrates the 1970s U.S.S.R. escalating abuse, torture, and eventual murder / "accidental" death of a young Christian all because he admitted, within earshot of other military conscripts, to losing track of time in prayer. From its main intended faith-based lens, it is about martyrdom and the power of God. From a secular lens, it is about the violence that ensues when the existence of a personal life is considered a political threat, and how authoritarians become the very "fanatics" they try to suppress.
I picked back up Voltaire’s Bastards again this week, which I’ve been slowly working my way through. I wouldn’t rate the writing as the best, but it’s definitely thought provoking and has aged pretty decently in my opinion. His comparison of elites and bourgeois to courtiers seems quite relevant.
I read that a while back. It had a big influence on me. I think if I read it again it would be one of those books where I keep saying to myself, "oh, that's where I got that idea!"
Thank you for sharing your captivating work with us, N.S.
In the April issue of First Things—in print and on the magazine’s website—there is a piece by Matthew Rose called “Masters and Slaves” in which philosopher Alexandre Kojève‘s interpretation of Hegel is presented as an explanation for how/why “identity politics” has, broadly speaking, consumed the West. I find it most convincing. Also, Maël Renouard’s Fragments of an Infinite Memory from NYRB is a lighter but equally revelatory study of the internet culture that increasingly IS our culture.
Its not over production; its shrinking the pie. What is shrinking the pie? As an example, look at academia a lot of the "overproduced elite" could have made a living in academia. Academia took a clue from the corporate world and turned almost everybody into adjunct contract labor.
I was scouring the web for mentions of 'elite overproduction' and I came across this post, but I've been a reader of yours for some time. While useful, I think the concept could benefit from some historicization in how it manifests socio-culturally. I recently authored a piece on how elite overproduction materialized in Czarist Russia, intuitively understood by Dostoevsky and many of his contemporaries. Maybe worth checking out, cheers.
Currently reading "Archetypes and Unconsciousness" by C.G. Jung. Jung also provides a good perspective on your topics. He points out that the human beings actually need spirituality and some kind of perception of depth. To oversimplify, this results from the fact that human mind is still not entirely explored by us (even as of today, and much less at Jung's times) and irrational explanations are necessary. Otherwise, Jung says, if we rationalize everything completely, we literally lose our minds. If you are new to his theories it is good to begin with summaries by later Jung adopters, such as "King Warrior Magician Lover" by R. Moore.
Thank you for the flattering comments to your readers ;-)
Having read too much, from Shakespeare´s sonnets to his Dark Lady to Sophocles and Marx, I stay away from one-subject-books. For me to understand our present, Mises, JB Peterson from Bible series to all strands of psychology, and an in-depth history of Western Civ are good essentials. Re-reading Genesis and Exodus and the Gospel St. John took me months and was deeply gratifying, too.
Our hybris of being smarter than our ancestors can only be cured by a solid understanding of history, for the opposite is the case.
To get a grasp of China, I found the German book "Die Chinesen" by Stefan Baron and his Chinese wife the best yet.
"The Captive Mind" by Czesław Miłosz. Here in contemporary life, fandom drama has always been a cringey rabbit hole, but for several years I've noticed a more specifically authoritarian moralistic streak in these social media arts and entertainment circles that used to have a reputation for creativity and openness. It actually gets really silly, like if somebody thinks a fantasy evil overlord is cool, they are accused of secretly having bad politics in real life(!) And it turns out these accusers are, like, 30-year-old professionals and academics, not just teenagers going through a phase. And this lack of distinction between fantasy and reality, or between the personal and political, is a major shift that has spilled into the real world. Back to the point of "The Captive Mind": it demonstrates how artists and writers and other creatives not only fall for totalitarianism like anyone else, but they are often *early adopters* of it. I reviewed the book itself on my blog.
"Vanya: A True Story" by Myrna Grant. Demonstrates the 1970s U.S.S.R. escalating abuse, torture, and eventual murder / "accidental" death of a young Christian all because he admitted, within earshot of other military conscripts, to losing track of time in prayer. From its main intended faith-based lens, it is about martyrdom and the power of God. From a secular lens, it is about the violence that ensues when the existence of a personal life is considered a political threat, and how authoritarians become the very "fanatics" they try to suppress.
Yes, I am a big fan of Miłosz. It was from him that I adopted the term "New Faith" to describe the new ideology of our time.
I picked back up Voltaire’s Bastards again this week, which I’ve been slowly working my way through. I wouldn’t rate the writing as the best, but it’s definitely thought provoking and has aged pretty decently in my opinion. His comparison of elites and bourgeois to courtiers seems quite relevant.
I read that a while back. It had a big influence on me. I think if I read it again it would be one of those books where I keep saying to myself, "oh, that's where I got that idea!"
Thank you for sharing your captivating work with us, N.S.
In the April issue of First Things—in print and on the magazine’s website—there is a piece by Matthew Rose called “Masters and Slaves” in which philosopher Alexandre Kojève‘s interpretation of Hegel is presented as an explanation for how/why “identity politics” has, broadly speaking, consumed the West. I find it most convincing. Also, Maël Renouard’s Fragments of an Infinite Memory from NYRB is a lighter but equally revelatory study of the internet culture that increasingly IS our culture.
I will definitely check out the Rose piece on Kojève; that sounds very interesting!
The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self by Carl R. Trueman
Its not over production; its shrinking the pie. What is shrinking the pie? As an example, look at academia a lot of the "overproduced elite" could have made a living in academia. Academia took a clue from the corporate world and turned almost everybody into adjunct contract labor.
also:https://religionnews.com/2021/05/18/james-lindsay-southern-baptists-crt-al-mohler-hoax-new-discourses-beth-moorerace-ofallon/
" See Satan Fall Like Lightning" by Rene Girard. Chapters 13 & 14 - "the other totalitarianism" is absolutely prophetic about our modern world.
I was scouring the web for mentions of 'elite overproduction' and I came across this post, but I've been a reader of yours for some time. While useful, I think the concept could benefit from some historicization in how it manifests socio-culturally. I recently authored a piece on how elite overproduction materialized in Czarist Russia, intuitively understood by Dostoevsky and many of his contemporaries. Maybe worth checking out, cheers.
Currently reading "Archetypes and Unconsciousness" by C.G. Jung. Jung also provides a good perspective on your topics. He points out that the human beings actually need spirituality and some kind of perception of depth. To oversimplify, this results from the fact that human mind is still not entirely explored by us (even as of today, and much less at Jung's times) and irrational explanations are necessary. Otherwise, Jung says, if we rationalize everything completely, we literally lose our minds. If you are new to his theories it is good to begin with summaries by later Jung adopters, such as "King Warrior Magician Lover" by R. Moore.
The "elite overproduction" thesis goes back to Hayek and Schumpeter. Nothing new there.
Maybe the degree of elite overproduction is new. It would be interesting to find out. Another strand in our convergence of disasters.
The Sovereign Individual- although it sounds like you have already read it and that it is part of your world view.
This brief summary by William Sims Bainbridge on his work (in the 1980s) with Rodney Stark on the inevitability of religion is worth a read:
https://cdn.centerforinquiry.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/26/1988/04/22160944/p21.pdf
Interesting point. Biology isn't in fashion these days, but nature is. That will have to be resolved at some point, one way or another.