Ghost of a flea: Civilization must be defended

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May 30, 2006

Civilization must be defended

"It is lack of confidence, more than anything else, that kills a civilisation. We can destroy ourselves by cynicism and disillusion, just as effectively as by bombs."
- Kenneth Clark

I was reading something clever a month or two ago that suggested changes at the BBC, and in British establishment culture, made it unlikely a show like Kenneth Clark's "Civilisation: A Personal View" could be produced today. Yes, Simon Schama's "History of Britain" is thorough, informative and excellent television but it is nonetheless a result of a currently trendy discourse of apology. In these days when all opinions are considered equal Clark's overt dismissal of Marxist historicism is a welcome relief. Here are Art, Truth and Beauty analloyed by doubt or, to be frank, today's all too common knowingness that serves an a substitute for knowing anything in particular (or at all). The Palazzo Ducale, Urbino is more beautiful and has a more human scale than the brute expression of power that is the Tempio Malatestiano. And none of the prevarication that this is only some person's opinion or that the difference only masks the truth of class relations or that we should be more interested in studying, say, a (largely imaginary) women's weaving collective. And certainly no dumbed down Da Vinci Code version of history meant to avoid leaving anyone embarrassed by their ignorance. Bracing stuff.

Which brings me to my own embarrassing ignorance. Until I watched Clark's series I had never heard of Skellig Michael; an obvious Flea redoubt in the long night between the fall of Rome and the new dawn of the Renaissance.

"People sometimes tell me that they prefer barbarism to civilisation. I doubt if they have given it a long enough trial. Like the people of Alexandria, they are bored by civilisation; but all the evidence suggests that the boredom of barbarism is infinitely greater."

Truth must be defended Update: Penn and Teller to their bit to defend civilization by debunking 9/11 conspiracy theories. Not all truths are created equal (nsfw language) (via INDC Journal).

Posted by Ghost of a flea at May 30, 2006 09:57 AM

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Comments

Society is extremely prone to falling back into barbarism at the blink of a hacker's proverbial eye, and unfortunatly, the social contract as envisioned by Thomas Hobbes is largely dead.

No longer do we have the primitive rituals or rites of passage to encourage natural selection of a physical sort, which allowed the tribe members to marry, procreate, and therefore, strengthen the gene pool. No longer are the weaker, wimpier, or simply lazy members of the society prevented from passing on their inferior genes to offspring. Hence Kevin Federline and his soon-to-be fourth child.

Our reliance on technology has made us stronger in a slight respect, but largely vulnerable to destruction and extinction in every other regard.

What I'm trying to say is, without civilization, we're basically screwed.

Posted by: agent bedhead at May 30, 2006 11:31 AM

Hmm, timely discussion of 'barbarism', as I'm re-reading "Foundation", although I've yet to read my Gibbon (!).
http://www.mikecampbell.net/the_campblog_may01_may31_2006.htm#2006052702

Thank you for the tip on Clark's work, hadn't heard of it.

I'm familiar with the Skelligs from Frank Delaney's "The Celts" series. One can imagine what life must have been like for those chaps. I have that 'How the Irish Saved Civilization' book, too, but have yet to go through it.

Posted by: The_Campblog at May 30, 2006 12:10 PM