A masterful insight that screams the motto of every history/political science instructor who ever spent more than five minutes in a classroom...."history matters!" We either learn to think for ourselves or somebody else does it for us. Excellent work Jim. As a senior History Professor at Oglethorpe University once told me "your best writing is ahead of you..." Hahahahaha always a pleasure my friend.
Much enjoyed reading this piece and of course given that Huxley taught Orwell french for a year at Eton and thus probably saw himself as the 'master' to the 'pupil' he felt that his version of the future was more likely to come about than Orwell's. Although Huxley was kind in his letter to Orwell offering ... "Agreeing with all that the critics have written of it, I need not tell you, yet once more, how fine and how profoundly important the book is." And after stating while his view of the future was more likely, Huxley pessimistically ended the letter "Meanwhile, of course, there may be a large scale biological and atomic war — in which case we shall have nightmares of other and scarcely imaginable kinds."
A masterful insight that screams the motto of every history/political science instructor who ever spent more than five minutes in a classroom...."history matters!" We either learn to think for ourselves or somebody else does it for us. Excellent work Jim. As a senior History Professor at Oglethorpe University once told me "your best writing is ahead of you..." Hahahahaha always a pleasure my friend.
I have 52 class days until retirement....
Makes me think of a WWF showdown
Much enjoyed reading this piece and of course given that Huxley taught Orwell french for a year at Eton and thus probably saw himself as the 'master' to the 'pupil' he felt that his version of the future was more likely to come about than Orwell's. Although Huxley was kind in his letter to Orwell offering ... "Agreeing with all that the critics have written of it, I need not tell you, yet once more, how fine and how profoundly important the book is." And after stating while his view of the future was more likely, Huxley pessimistically ended the letter "Meanwhile, of course, there may be a large scale biological and atomic war — in which case we shall have nightmares of other and scarcely imaginable kinds."
I always considered Brave New World more prescient. Give them "bread and circuses" and they are putty in your hands.