Christianity and Culture
by T. S. Eliot
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Book Summary Information
Author: T. S. EliotEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 1960-04-11
ISBN: 0156177358
Number of pages: 216
Publisher: Mariner Books
Product features:
- ISBN13: 9780156177351
- Condition: New
- Notes: BRAND NEW FROM PUBLISHER! 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Tracking provided on most orders. Buy with Confidence! Millions of books sold!
Book Reviews of Christianity and Culture
Book Review: Religion, Politics, & Philosophy
Summary: 3 Stars
T.S. Eliot is not saying that the creation of a Christian state would be a utopia in which everything would be perfect. That would be foolish of him knowing that utopias seem to feel it is their duty to fall apart. This is an important idea to lay down. If Eliot's first essay feels utopian, it is because he is making a case for which type of society would function best, not perfectly. He acknowledges that a Christian society requires many tensions in order to function properly. What he has proposed is a society in which people can argue over dissenting viewpoints, but all discussions should be carried out with a common set of Christian values as their foundation. That is what would work best. He even relents by saying that another set of values could work, just not as well.
Unfortunately, his argument comes from a Christian perspective and bias, which clearly shines through. He bases much of his argument on the idea that one truth regarding God exists and that a society that departs from and forgets that is doomed to fail. This ideology enters into his concept of a Christian education and a national faith, which can only work if the society learns or assumes that the truth they are going to found their society on lies within the Christian faith. Otherwise, the society will not be a positive culture because it will be founded on a believed or actual lie, unless it can somehow happen that founding something on a lie can end with a positive culture, which might be a totally separate, although interesting, topic altogether.
In a distanced conjunction with his first essay, his second one focuses completely on culture. To him, culture is organic, analyzable, and balanced with regard unity and diversity in many areas. He mentions urbanity, civility, learning, philosophy, and the arts but would no doubt include many others, which should all be considered at the same time to get a whole grasp of culture. He has a gripe with the separation of the various areas of culture. The arts should continue to carry out cultural discourse and critique with religion, politics, etc. and vice versa. Culture becomes stagnant when the margins stop talking. If culture "includes all the characteristic activities and interests of a people," then the various areas should be in dialogue with each other so that the various mediums can stay representative of the culture in which they live.
Eliot's poetry and life must have followed this idea fairly closely. His poetry both argues and dances with concepts in religion, politics, philosophy, etc. It is also his communication with thinkers from other European countries. In "The Waste Land," his invocation of authors like Conrad and Dante, regions like Greece and Egypt, and other field of artistic endeavor like ragtime and common music halls puts skin on his belief that every aspect of culture, both national and continental, should be in discussion if new thought is to continue.
Reviewed by Jonathan Stephens
Church History Books
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