Cultural pessimism
Encyclopedia
Cultural pessimism is a variety of pessimism
, as formulated by what is nowadays called a cultural critic
.
's From Dawn to Decadence: 500 Years of Western Cultural Life, 1500 to the Present (2000) challenges the reader to be hopeful. On Matthew Arnold
, a major cultural critic of the Victorian era, Barzun writes
The end of the millennium saw in the USA concerns rather specific to the conservative view on the culture wars and university education.
Western Europe, on the other hand, struggled towards self-definition in the face of limiting demography
, and postmodernism
as at least journalistically predominant — the difference primarily lying in the political prominence of the issues.
is in the past, and the current generation is fit only for dumbing down
and cultural careerism. Some significant formulations have gone beyond this, proposing a universally-applicable cyclic model of history
— notably in the writings of Giambattista Vico
.
Classical culture, based on traditional classical scholarship in Latin
and Greek
literature, had itself been under attack externally for two generations or more by 1900, and had produced in Nietzsche, a model pessimistic thinker.
The increasing availability of information of world events during this period, led to increased despondence and consultants such as Marcus Buckle vocalised this as a general feeling of doom.
epoch might be seen as a refusal, of the rather intellectual and secular choice between nihilism
and modernism
. Politically this tended to squeeze liberal
thought.
Specific criticism of the West, in the first years of the twentieth century, is usually taken as of the Old World of Europe
, excluding therefore North America in particular. The classic source for this is Spengler's The Decline of the West
(1918–1923), often cited in the years following its publication. The tone of much of the critical writing, for example, of T. S. Eliot
, and the historical writing of Arnold J. Toynbee
from the 1920s onwards, is identifiable. It was fashionable to say that Spengler had at least formulated some truths about the cultural situation of Europe after World War I
. Eliot's major early work The Waste Land
(1922) was commonly and directly interpreted in those terms.
Pessimism
Pessimism, from the Latin word pessimus , is a state of mind in which one perceives life negatively. Value judgments may vary dramatically between individuals, even when judgments of fact are undisputed. The most common example of this phenomenon is the "Is the glass half empty or half full?"...
, as formulated by what is nowadays called a cultural critic
Cultural critic
A cultural critic is a critic of a given culture, usually as a whole and typically on a radical basis. There is significant overlap with social and cultural theory.-Terminology:...
.
Contemporary proponents
Towards the end of the 20th century, cultural pessimism surfaced in a prominent way. The very title of Jacques BarzunJacques Barzun
Jacques Martin Barzun is a French-born American historian of ideas and culture. He has written on a wide range of topics, but is perhaps best known as a philosopher of education, his Teacher in America being a strong influence on post-WWII training of schoolteachers in the United...
's From Dawn to Decadence: 500 Years of Western Cultural Life, 1500 to the Present (2000) challenges the reader to be hopeful. On Matthew Arnold
Matthew Arnold
Matthew Arnold was a British poet and cultural critic who worked as an inspector of schools. He was the son of Thomas Arnold, the famed headmaster of Rugby School, and brother to both Tom Arnold, literary professor, and William Delafield Arnold, novelist and colonial administrator...
, a major cultural critic of the Victorian era, Barzun writes
- According to Arnold, the behaviour of the English social classes was touched neither by spiritual nor by intellectual forces; the upper orders were barbarians, the middle classes philistines. (op. cit. p.573)
The end of the millennium saw in the USA concerns rather specific to the conservative view on the culture wars and university education.
Western Europe, on the other hand, struggled towards self-definition in the face of limiting demography
Demography
Demography is the statistical study of human population. It can be a very general science that can be applied to any kind of dynamic human population, that is, one that changes over time or space...
, and postmodernism
Postmodernism
Postmodernism is a philosophical movement evolved in reaction to modernism, the tendency in contemporary culture to accept only objective truth and to be inherently suspicious towards a global cultural narrative or meta-narrative. Postmodernist thought is an intentional departure from the...
as at least journalistically predominant — the difference primarily lying in the political prominence of the issues.
Traditional versions
It has been significant presence in the general outlook of many historical cultures: things are going to the dogs, the Golden ageGolden Age
The term Golden Age comes from Greek mythology and legend and refers to the first in a sequence of four or five Ages of Man, in which the Golden Age is first, followed in sequence, by the Silver, Bronze, and Iron Ages, and then the present, a period of decline...
is in the past, and the current generation is fit only for dumbing down
Dumbing down
Dumbing down is a pejorative term for a perceived trend to lower the intellectual content of literature, education, news, and other aspects of culture...
and cultural careerism. Some significant formulations have gone beyond this, proposing a universally-applicable cyclic model of history
Cyclic history
Cyclic history is a theory which dictates that the major forces that motivate human actions return in a cycle.Among these forces are religion/spirituality, politics, science, philosophy, curiosity, creativity, psychology, morality and astronomical conjunctions. D. H...
— notably in the writings of Giambattista Vico
Giambattista Vico
Giovanni Battista ' Vico or Vigo was an Italian political philosopher, rhetorician, historian, and jurist....
.
Nineteenth century
The pessimistic element was available in Schopenhauer's philosophy and Matthew Arnold's cultural criticism. The tide of Whiggish optimism (exemplified by Macaulay) receded somewhat in the middle of the reign of Queen Victoria.Classical culture, based on traditional classical scholarship in Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
and Greek
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
literature, had itself been under attack externally for two generations or more by 1900, and had produced in Nietzsche, a model pessimistic thinker.
The increasing availability of information of world events during this period, led to increased despondence and consultants such as Marcus Buckle vocalised this as a general feeling of doom.
Early twentieth century
Cultural pessimism of the Oswald SpenglerOswald Spengler
Oswald Manuel Arnold Gottfried Spengler was a German historian and philosopher whose interests also included mathematics, science, and art. He is best known for his book The Decline of the West , published in 1918, which puts forth a cyclical theory of the rise and decline of civilizations...
epoch might be seen as a refusal, of the rather intellectual and secular choice between nihilism
Nihilism
Nihilism is the philosophical doctrine suggesting the negation of one or more putatively meaningful aspects of life. Most commonly, nihilism is presented in the form of existential nihilism which argues that life is without objective meaning, purpose, or intrinsic value...
and modernism
Modernism
Modernism, in its broadest definition, is modern thought, character, or practice. More specifically, the term describes the modernist movement, its set of cultural tendencies and array of associated cultural movements, originally arising from wide-scale and far-reaching changes to Western society...
. Politically this tended to squeeze liberal
Liberalism
Liberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...
thought.
Specific criticism of the West, in the first years of the twentieth century, is usually taken as of the Old World of Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, excluding therefore North America in particular. The classic source for this is Spengler's The Decline of the West
The Decline of the West
The Decline of the West , or The Downfall of the Occident, is a two-volume work by Oswald Spengler, the first volume of which was published in the summer of 1918...
(1918–1923), often cited in the years following its publication. The tone of much of the critical writing, for example, of T. S. Eliot
T. S. Eliot
Thomas Stearns "T. S." Eliot OM was a playwright, literary critic, and arguably the most important English-language poet of the 20th century. Although he was born an American he moved to the United Kingdom in 1914 and was naturalised as a British subject in 1927 at age 39.The poem that made his...
, and the historical writing of Arnold J. Toynbee
Arnold J. Toynbee
Arnold Joseph Toynbee CH was a British historian whose twelve-volume analysis of the rise and fall of civilizations, A Study of History, 1934–1961, was a synthesis of world history, a metahistory based on universal rhythms of rise, flowering and decline, which examined history from a global...
from the 1920s onwards, is identifiable. It was fashionable to say that Spengler had at least formulated some truths about the cultural situation of Europe after World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. Eliot's major early work The Waste Land
The Waste Land
The Waste Land[A] is a 434-line[B] modernist poem by T. S. Eliot published in 1922. It has been called "one of the most important poems of the 20th century." Despite the poem's obscurity—its shifts between satire and prophecy, its abrupt and unannounced changes of speaker, location and time, its...
(1922) was commonly and directly interpreted in those terms.