"A stimulating and challenging book that no one with the slightest interest in politics, arts or the media can afford to miss"
- Anthony Howard
In his new book, John Elsom considers the drama of international politics from the viewpoint of a theatre critic, someone who sits in life´s stalls and takes notes in semi-darkness. He relates how grand narratives of human behaviour grew from the insights of Darwin, Descartes and the ancient Greek philosopher, Plato, to become "the unacknowledged state religion of the West, High Modernity". The primary aim of most European ministries of culture, together with Western media companies, is to promote aspects of this faith.
With a dazzling range of examples, from George Bush´s New World Order to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Peace Process in Northern Ireland and John Birt at the BBC, Dr. Elsom describes how the faith in High Modernity has permeated Western habits of mind. High Modernity often alarms those who do not share its Enlightenment beliefs, but it reassures others who want to believe that the future is something that "we can, and must, control".*
The book was published in September, 2007 and is available in selected outlets but you can buy a copy right here using the 'Buy the Book' link for only £15 (+ postage).
* A quotation from the mission statement for the Millennium Dome.