Against the Tide

This book is a posthumous anthology of Roger Scruton's writings, edited by Mark Dooley. Roger Scruton was an eminent British conservative thinker. Conservatism in his opinion is the awareness that many of the good things we enjoy now, are actually the fruit of self-sacrifice from our predecessors and therefore they require protection. It is self-evident that in times of change, this protection is highly needed.

The term sacrifice is all too often associated with abuse and exploitation, whereas sacrifice is actually essential to achieve anything worth pursuing. The mainstream press associates conservatism with populism, as this press considers itself progressive. Conservative thinkers like Roger Scruton also emphasise the fact that citizenship involves obligations for the people who reside here. Therefore also the benefits should return to the people who reside here.

By living among freedom fighters in Eastern Europe before 1989, the author became aware of the transforming effect of sacrifice on the human character. He explains the resistance of countries like Poland and Hungary against Europe. European institutions have no soul and their bureaucracy resembles the bureaucracy of the old communist party. Europe, Quo Vadis?

The author rightfully complains about the destructive work of postmodernism (my wording). The spoilt post-war children sneer at our ideals but never understood why we needed them. Truth, virtue and beauty no longer seem to exist. Our society can never degenerate to a point where vice alone has a following. “When we start to celebrate ugliness, we become ugly too”.

Roger Scruton is extremely critical against modern pedagogy. He detests the jargon created by ‘people who can neither write with skill nor read with understanding’. He is not willing to adopt the art of taking offence, the ‘woke’ or witch-hunt culture, which dominates the social media. He doesn't deny the possibility of injustice but he unmasks the sociologists who detect structural violence behind all power exercised, even power that is a legitimate outcome of consent and compromise.

Scruton also asks why holiness has not retained its meaning to us. Christian faith is now covered with ridicule by trivialising materialists and sarcastic cynics but as the author points out: Christian religion exactly teaches us to accept ridicule. The validity of the Christian message can never be affected by what others think or do. Those who read my blogs from time to time, know that this is a central theme for me.

I refer to my blog The Honour of Humiliation and The Chasm between Populists and Academics. Roger Scruton is also one of the thinkers in the Dutch book Denkers van vandaag voor de wereld van morgen.