Can the cultural values that have distinguished Western civilization survive the present-day preoccupation with relativism and the quest for pleasure? In this important and wide-ranging collection of essays, ten distinguished critics reflect on the direction of our society, emphasizing both the dangers that threaten our institutions and the vivifying survivals that are worthy of being cherished and nurtured. Among the contributors, Robert H. Bork considers the contemporary assaults on the tradition of law; Anthony Daniels, the English doctor and essayist, finds that he must defend the venerable principle that physicians traditionally subscribe to: "First do no harm"; Roger Kimball assesses the prospects of high culture; Hilton Kramer writes on the future of criticism; Kenneth Minogue shows how Western society has increasingly fallen prey to a "new Epicureanism"; Eric Ormsby warns of the fate of research libraries in the age of the Internet; David Pryce-Jones takes a hard look at the way the bureaucratic imperatives of the European Union are undermining freedom and democracy; Diana Schaub investigates the values of Generation X; Mark Steyn defends Western values against the anti-Western, anti-democratic forces that operate within the West itself; and Keith Windschuttle shows how efforts to alter the historical record threaten the very survival of culture. In all, The Survival of Culture provides a critical fever chart of our age, plotting the health of our cultural institutions and mounting a powerful attack on their adversaries. Drawn from the pages of The New Criterion, these vividly written essays are guaranteed to spark controversy and debate.

About the Author
Hilton Kramer is editor of The New Criterion and author, most recently, of The Twilight of the Intellectuals. Roger Kimball is managing editor of The New Criterion and author of The Long March, Experiments Against Reality, and Tenured Radicals. Together Messrs. Kramer and Kimball have also edited Against the Grain, The Future of the European Past, and The Betrayal of Liberalism.

Reviews
Important. * The Washington Times *
Lively, smart, and thought-provoking...caustic, sometimes funny jeremiads.... This book has much to offer and is recommended. * Library Journal *
Insightful.... Interesting. * The Weekly Standard *



Book Information
ISBN 9781566634656
Author Hilton Kramer
Format Paperback
Page Count 270
Imprint Ivan R Dee, Inc
Publisher Ivan R Dee, Inc
Weight(grams) 327g
Dimensions(mm) 212mm * 140mm * 21mm