The second part of the title above is taken from a Jordan Peterson tweet that got me thinking about the tragic circumstances that have befallen the humanities. It is a problem that has preoccupied me for years and I explored it in my novel The City of Earthly Desire. Rather than rattle on about it here, I'll take an extract from the novel that touches on the subject:
“Columbia. Another eminent citadel of darkness!”
Reinhardt winced after Verge said this. “Why do you call Oxford and Columbia citadels of darkness?”
“Isn't it obvious? Never in the history of the world has the planet been flooded with many so-called educated and enlightened individuals clutching their precious little degrees, yet what has this expansion of education and enlightenment brought us?” Verge paused for a moment and waited for an answer to his question; when none was forthcoming, he continued, “Why, a perishing society, of course!” He swirled his cognac again. A bemused expression spread across his face. “The absolute triumph of mediocrity under the flag of humanism. They have drowned us all in an infinite sea of vulgarity – that, my dear friends, is the lasting testament of the citadels of darkness. Bless them in their effort to enlighten us!”
“Columbia. Another eminent citadel of darkness!”
Reinhardt winced after Verge said this. “Why do you call Oxford and Columbia citadels of darkness?”
“Isn't it obvious? Never in the history of the world has the planet been flooded with many so-called educated and enlightened individuals clutching their precious little degrees, yet what has this expansion of education and enlightenment brought us?” Verge paused for a moment and waited for an answer to his question; when none was forthcoming, he continued, “Why, a perishing society, of course!” He swirled his cognac again. A bemused expression spread across his face. “The absolute triumph of mediocrity under the flag of humanism. They have drowned us all in an infinite sea of vulgarity – that, my dear friends, is the lasting testament of the citadels of darkness. Bless them in their effort to enlighten us!”
RSS Feed
