Theodore Dalrymple is an English writer and retired prison doctor and psychiatrist. Daniel in his writings has frequently argued that the liberal and progressive views prevalent within Western intellectual circles minimize the responsibility of individuals for their own actions and undermine mores which are traditional, contributing to the formation within rich countries of an underclass which is afflicted by violence, sexually transmitted diseases, criminality, welfare dependency and drug abuse. His writings are generally based on his experience of working with criminals and the mentally ill. Dalrymple has been at various occasions been accused of being a pessimist and a misanthrope, but his persistent conservative philosophy has which is describe as being anti-ideological, skeptical, rational and empiricist has been worthy of praise . In 2011, Dalrymple for his works has received the 2011 Freedom Prize from the Flemish think-tank Liberia. The Theodore Dalrymple’s, “What We Have to Lose”, is the vigorous defense of civilization from barbarism. His main argument which he puts forwards with detailed examples and evidences many of them form his own experiences, recognizes that often the greatest threats to this fragile human achievement come from within. In his essay he provides a chilling glimpse at the problem we face in the West. He recognizes the fact that we have grown so used to civilization that it is almost impossible to believe that it is a fragile thing, and it can disappear. It gives us an important lesson that civilization, despite its grandeur and its seemingly endless resources, is not invincible, and can disappear. I would say we are witnessing an accelerating decline. The situation in West comes down to a point wher...
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...e against tradition will be an end of wisdom and virtue. They may not be aware of how much they can lose. He understands on the basis of his various experiences of travelling around the world or as a prison doctor, and his profound knowledge of the cultural and scientific heritage of the West which is now denigrated in, the culture an important aspect of the West would be lost forever. His writings are a warning to us. With the current society indulged in an endless regime of sex, drugs, rock and roll etc. a lot can happen if the social customs of millennia are discarded, but it is not too late for us to see the future and avoid it.
References
Hannan, Daniel [4 May 2011]."In praise of Flanders, Right-wing intellectuals and Theodore Dalrymple",The Daily Telegraph.
Malcolm, Noel [15 August 2010]. "Spoilt Rotten! by Theodore Dalrymple: review", The Sunday Telegraph.
...traight from the tavern world – survival is more important to him, unlike those of the court world who live by honour, and care not if it leads to their death, but only that they one day may come to be ‘honourable’, whether dead or alive. He closes with the comment that what he has told us is his ‘catechism’. This suggests an idea that his religion is to avoid honour, and ever to question its value.
William Richardson Davie was one of the eight delegates present at the Constitutional Convention who were born outside of the colonies. Davie was born in 1756 in England to semi-affluent Presbyterian parents. After moving to South Carolina to be closer to his uncle, Davie studied at Queen’s Museum and then Liberty Hall. He also studied at Princeton University and the College of New Jersey in order to become a lawyer. His studies were interrupted by the outbreak of the Revolutionary War, he joined the Patriot cause immediately and joined the fight for independance. Davie served under General Allen Jones until he was injured in 1779. It was during his time serving under General Jones that he met his wife, Sarah. Many thought the pairing was
What is poverty? Is poverty measured by a state of being or is poverty measured by the money we make and material possession’s we hold on to so tightly. In Theodore Dalrymple’s “What is Poverty” he explains the effects of a being a “welfare state”, such as England is, but does this truly answer the question of what it truly means to be povern.
Wole Soyinka's essay "Every Dictator's Nightmare" in the April 18, 1999 edition of the New York Times magazine seems almost prescient in light of the events currently occurring geopolitically. The recent events occurred in Egypt are certainly representative of the themes present in Soyinka's essay; “the idea that certain fundamental rights are inherent to all humanity" (476). Soyinka, the 1986 noble peace prizewinner for literature, portrays not only his well-formed persona in his essay, but also his well formed thoughts, devoid of literary naiveté common in so many of today’s writers. The essay portrays societies as corrupted, but with some elements of innate nobility. The existence of societies is guaranteed by the realization that every individual has undeniable basic rights. Soyinka also presents an overview of the enslavement of individual cultures; to the forces of religion, dictatorship, economic pressures, forced labor, and ideology; presenting the reader strong examples of the world's failure to respect individual human rights throughout history. In his essay, Soyinka’s explores the employment of irony and contradiction, in explaining the paradoxes that have riddled the historical search for just societies.
Nothing good ever comes out of violence.Two wrongs never make it right, but cause harm. Contemporary society has not responded enough legacies of historical globalization. This essay will cover the following arguments such as residential schools, slavery and the Sierra Leone civil war.
The short story “The Decline of the West” is written in 2010 by a man named Hanif Kureishi. It focuses on the how the modern capitalistic society is and how it affects the family life. It also questions the ethnicity of capitalism.
Despite these convincing arguments, he does make a few points that don't hold water, such as that he would destroy the law if he were to escape – this is an exaggerated claim that invites refutation. Also, though his escape would be in general fruitless to himself and his comrades, further argument might contend that citizens of other cities would benefit from his teaching, and act as a civilizing force. However, due to space considerations of this essay, I didn't write a fourth section.
A “utopia is that which is in contradiction with reality,” said the famous French novelist Albert Camus in his collection of essays, Between Hell and Reason. History shows us that seemingly exemplary ideals in practice have led to the collapse of societies. Just examine the two most prominent attempts at a utopia: Hitler’s attempt to socialize all of Europe and create the “perfect” Aryan race coupled with Karl Marx’s beliefs to instate communism into society. The final result was the destruction of their perspective visionary worlds. There was one major facet that prevented these two from creating their paradigms: utopias take away individual freedom and identity and therefore society cannot exist. Aldous Huxley’s science fiction novel Brave New World examines the large disconnect between the future and present day societies, showing how several aspects of this dystopian world lead to the downfall of the individual identity, most prominently exemplified by the death of John Savage.
He also has a continuing theme of his work being premature. This theme comes from his strong ego believing that the reason that he is not widely read is because his ideas are too revolutionary to be understood. "But it would contradict my character entirely if I expected ears and hands for my truths today: that today one doesn't hear me and doesn't accept my ideas is not only understandable, it seems right to me" (715). His continual focus on the stupidity of Germans becomes irritating after a while. "To think German, to feel German-I can do anything, but not that" (719).
“Civilization and Its Discontents” is a book written by Sigmund Freud in 1929 (originally titled “Das Unbehagen in der Kultur” or The Uneasiness in Culture.) This is considered to be one of Freud’s most important and widely read works. In this book, Freud explains his perspective by enumerating what he sees as fundamental tensions between civilization and the individual. He asserts that this tension stems from the individual’s quest for freedom and non-conformity and civilization’s quest for uniformity and instinctual repression. Most of humankind’s primitive instincts are clearly destructive to the health and well-being of a human community (such as the desire to kill.) As a direct result, civilization creates laws designed to prohibit killing, rape, and adultery, and has severe consequences for those that break these laws. Freud argues that this process is an inherent quality of civilization that instills perpetual feelings of discontent in its citizens. This theory is based on the idea that humans have characteristic instincts that are immutable. The most notable of these are the desires for sex, and the predisposition to violent aggression towards authoritative figures as well as sexual competitors. Both of these obstruct the gratification of a person’s instincts. Freud also believes that humans are governed by the pleasure principle, and that they will do whatever satisfies or pleasures them. He also believes that fulfilling these instincts satisfies the pleasure principle.
McKay expresses his enemy as a pack of dogs, stating that they are “mad and hungry dogs”. He also states that the pack of dogs mock their prey. The dogs are supposed to represent the white men and how they treated African Americans at the time. The poem is simply stating let us (African Americans) die in peace and do not push us to death or torture us. This poem acts as a call to action for African Americans to rise up and not let the whites treat them like this.
middle of paper ... ... This comment suggests that the current idea, liberalism, may just be a phase in human ideology that has spread worldwide. Though he made a compelling argument and posed thought provoking questions that supported his argument, the flaws in his argument, after stringent analysis, contradict his main points. Works Cited Ferguson, C. (Director).
It is a perceptible phenomenon that modern ideas and transnational interaction between people brings about so many changes that they come into conflict with the existing norms and belief systems of a society. In fact, the ability to assimilate productive changes and the capacity to discard beliefs that are detrimental to the interest of the society are the essential qualities of a good social order. If a society allows itself to be dominated by beliefs that are not in tune with the needs and aspirations of the changing times, one cannot ascribe it as a progressive society. On the other hand, it must also be said that a society that is open to change without considering the detrimental effects that such a change can make in the long run, will not add quality to that society. Hence, ideally there needs to be a balance between age old ideas that form the foundation of the society on and modern ideas that gives vigor and variety to the society. The modern progressive ideas need to be implemented on the foundations of strong principles bestowed by culture and traditions. Such a society that can give equal importance to proven and tested norms but also respects newer ideas of merit will be healthy and vibrant. However, we can see that in this strife torn world people are carried away by ideas and seek to implement them without considering their merit in the long run. Similarly, conservatives in the society are too eager to cling on to practices that abuse human dignity and rights. Moderation is no where to be seen and the urge to counter the refusal to change with militant zeal, is a very pernicious trend that has gripped societies worldwide. One such issue that has always been at loggerheads for the past many decades is f...
Under his last training, he basically tells the reader to avoid things that are harmful both physically and mentally. He then followed with ways to live in a healthier manner, involving interbeing with others, society and the world as a whole. Without being mindful of the different nourishments he discussed, physical, moral, mental and relational heaths erode and more.
Reading his meditation make me think about how it is important to think about what is true and what is false. I think that he was making one see the importance of questioning one’s senses about whether it is false. It is also important that one does not become too skeptical about things. One should be moderate about what we should question.