From Dawn to Decadence: 1500 to the Present

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From Dawn to Decadence: 1500 to the Present…500 Years of Western Cultural Life

Jacques Barzun describes what Western Man wrought from the Renaissance and Reformation down to the present in the double light of its own time and also our pressing concerns. He introduces characters and incidents with his unusual literary style and grace, bringing to the fore those that have been forgotten or obscured. His compelling chapters—such as “Puritans as Democrats,” “The Monarchs’ Revolution,” and “The Artist Prophet and Jester”—show the recurrent role of great themes throughout the era.

The triumphs and defeats of five hundred years form an inspiring saga that modifies the current impression of one long tale of oppression by white European males. Women and their deeds are prominent, and freedom (even in sexual matters) is not an invention of the last decades. And when Barzun rates the present not as a culmination but a decline, he is in no way a prophet of doom. Instead, he shows decadence as the normal close of great periods and a necessary condition of the creative novelty that will burst forth—tomorrow or the next day.

Check out all the Educational Resources that Memoria Press has to offer. Classical education is the cultivation of wisdom and virtue through the study of the liberal arts and the Great Books. The liberal arts are the universal linguistic and mathematical skills students need to excel in every area of life. The Great Books are the means by which we pass on the cultural heritage of the Christian West. A mastery of both is the best way to prepare a child for a life of wisdom and virtue. Memoria Press’ beautiful and comprehensive classical Christian curriculum best provides the tools for mastering these two essential elements of education.

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