Modern Age - Summer 2016 - 79

POSTMODERN DEMENTIA

In contrast, William Gairdner's The Great Divide, as the title
indicates, is a "Grand Thesis" about the hopelessness of policy
debates because of the intractability of the Culture War. There is a
fundamental divide-a moral and philosophical gulf-between
the competing political camps in contemporary democracies, he
maintains, which is all the worse for being largely unacknowledged by the divergent parties, especially the conservatives: "In
short, although we still use the flattering term liberal democracy
to describe our political systems, we are no longer liberal in the
original sense of that word-of valuing freedom from oppressive
government, and using democracy as a means to ensure that
freedom" (15-16). Placing Gairdner's book side by side with the
Bauerlein-Bellow collection forces us to confront the question of
how desperate our situation is. Will a systematic reform of our
government and other public institutions restore society, or is a
complete cultural and moral renewal necessary?
The Bauerlein-Bellow volume opens with an "Introduction-The
Knowledge Requirement: What Every American Needs to Know,"
in which E. D. Hirsch Jr. revisits the subject of his seminal 1987
work, Cultural Literacy. This is followed by three sections of five,
four, and six essays respectively and concludes with an afterword
by the editors. Part 1, "States of Mind: Indicators of Intellectual and
Cognitive Decline," offers accounts of how educational and other
cultural institutions are failing to raise students' intellectual skill
and knowledge to adequate levels for successful performance as
citizens or professionals. Part 2, "Personal and Cognitive Habits/
Interests," looks at cultural trends with alarming effects on civic
and personal morale, and part 3, "National Consequences," provides an overview of the social and political malaise that results
from these defective institutional practices and personal failings.
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Modern Age - Summer 2016

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Modern Age - Summer 2016

Contents
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