Meditations: Vol. 1, Issue 3
No Images? Click here
In this issue:
- Podcast: Dr. Gary Gregg on "Education & Proper Political Culture for Leadership" in Plato's Republic
- SBS Student Project: Taylor Durling, SBS 2018, on "Oath of Office: A Call to Revisit Civic Education in the Military"
- Book Recommendation: The Essential Russell Kirk: Selected Essays edited by George A. Panichas
- Video of the Month: Bradley J. Birzer, PhD, on "Conservative Confusion: Why We Should Read Russell Kirk Today"
- Next Reading Assignment: Target 3 (due Jan. 15)
As we turn to a new year, we at the McConnell Center are all thinking about you and your families. Whatever holidays and traditions you observe during this time of year, we hope that they are meaningful and memorable. In 2019, we hope you dedicate yourself to being better at what you do and find meaning and joy wherever you are.
In this edition of Meditations, you will find my recommendation to read works by Russell Kirk, along with a video of a great lecture on Kirk and his legacy. You may be surprised and benefit from taking a look at the work of a man who gave the name “conservative” meaning in modern America. In this age of ideological confusion and political division, Kirk has many lessons to teach. You will also find Taylor Durling’s (SBS 2018) work on revitalizing civic education as a part of professional military education. And, of course, you have my podcast on the next section of Plato’s Republic. This section of the reading brings us to the creation of society, government and YOU–the Guardians. There is some really interesting stuff here, but wait 'til ya get to the next sections! The really interesting stuff–the stuff that can be life-transforming–is on the way!
I hope our efforts here are useful to you. I know of at least one person who has created a reading group based on our assignments, which is a great idea and I hope it works. Feel free to share these e-newsletters as widely as you like and let us know what we can do better to serve.
Finish 2018 on a strong note, and I look forward to being back in touch in the new year.
Gary L. Gregg, PhD
McConnell Center Director
LISTEN | Dr. Gary Gregg begins by comparing Plato’s philosophical assumptions about the origin of communities with those that have shaped the modern understanding, including the views of Hobbes, Locke and Rousseau (5:11). He then dives into the creation of Plato’s city and discusses the origins of war (13:20), the need for guardians, and the question of who will guard against them. Plato’s metaphor of the “noble puppies” is examined, along with the education of the guardian class (17:57). Other key topics include censorship (24:22), “The Noble Lie” (32:37), culture and corruption (34:28), music (44:01), and the very important relationship between politics and culture (47:40). Gregg ends with highlights of what will be covered in Target 3 (53:19).
{SBS Student Research Project}
Taylor Durling (SBS 2018) on "Oath of Office: A Call to Revisit Civic Education in the Military"
... How many Soldiers seriously consider their oaths before taking them? How many revisit their oaths throughout their careers and reconsider their obligations in light of positions of increasing responsibility? The recruiting process is devoid of any assessment of a recruit’s knowledge or commitment to the Constitution. How many commanders take the time to instruct their subordinates in the meaning and implications of their oaths? {Read more}
{Gregg's Bookshelf Recommendation}
Russell Kirk: Surprised by the Foundations of Conservatism
This fall marks the 100th anniversary of the birth of Russell Kirk, someone who has been very influential in my life and whose family and home are vital aspects of the McConnell Scholar experience. In this time of great political divisions and ideological confusion, it would do everyone well to spend some time with Russell Kirk. Conservatives will find a vision that has largely been abandoned and so will find Kirk new and profound; Progressives will be surprised by sharing some core values with Kirk while being edified by seeing the very foundations of thoughtful and imaginative conservatism.
Born in Plymouth, Michigan on Oct. 19, 1918, Kirk's first important book was published in 1953 as The Conservative Mind. Before this book hit America’s political culture, there were those who were resisting the New Deal, those who were concerned about cultural trends, and those who were anti-communist. There was no unifying movement and little self-understanding among these groups, however. With The Conservative Mind, Kirk demonstrated a long pedigree of great thinkers–from Edmund Burke and John Adams to Robert Frost and T.S. Eliot–who were also “conservative” thinkers. The book shook America’s intellectual culture and provided a positive rallying point for a disparate group of thinkers and political activists.
You can find out more about Kirk in my little Op Ed I published last month or by looking at the many outstanding essays about him found at The Imaginative Conservative, which was founded to promote his vision. We also have an outstanding video of a lecture by Dr. Bradley J. Birzer in this edition of Meditations. That lecture has garnered appreciation and surprise across the political spectrum. If you are going to start with a book, I highly recommend the essays found in The Essential Russell Kirk. Those are taken from across his career and are accessible and important to anyone who wants to understand how we got here and how things might have been different.
Conservative Confusion:
Why We Should Read Russell Kirk Today
Dr. Bradley Birzer, Hillsdale College
{Next Reading Assignment}
Target 3: Jan. 15
Read: Book III, IV & V, pp. 91-152
Plato continues his discussion of the creation of the perfect state by introducing the natural hierarchies that will lead to proper governing, and, by analogy, to proper decision-making within our own lives.
