From a book review highlighted by our friends at First Thoughts:
“Marxists can account for the singular, closed character of modern society by invoking Marx’s theory of historical materialism. As we produce, so we are. Our families, our friendships, our associations, our imagination, are all shaped by the specific mode of productive relations in which we find ourselves. MacIntyre, however, rejects this way of thinking. He talks instead of the interpenetration of theory and practice. But if theory and practice interact and mutually influence each other, then it makes little sense to talk about modernity as the kind of singular, integrated entity targeted by critics who believe that the mode of production makes us what we are or that modernity is the product of a single theoretical project. It seems to me that MacIntyre’s image of modernity as an integrated, monolithic condition only makes sense within Marxist assumptions that he has clearly abandoned.” [emphasis added]
Most Porchers need to read that.
Quite a few Straussians do also.
Dear Reader,
Can I be direct with you?
War abroad. Socialists on the rise. AI upending human life. Endless uproar online. The modern attention economy doesn’t want readers — it wants users enslaved to the tyranny of the present.
First Things is the antidote: literary excellence, timeless truths, and a fixed point of reference in a culture that has lost its bearings.
But we can’t do it without readers like you.
Our goal: Raise $150,000 by November 1 to sustain First Things in the year ahead.
Your gift anchors readers in the permanent things.
Make your Fall Campaign gift now using the button below.
If you have any questions or would like more information, please contact Giovanni Del Piero, Director of the Editor’s Circle, at gdelpiero@firstthings.com or 212-627-1985.
YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE
The Church in the Age of Therapy
In 1966, Philip Rieff wrote in The Triumph of the Therapeutic that “Religious man was born to…
Canada’s Deadliest Blind Spot
On September 20, the Daily Mail ran a story with the provocative headline, “Our 83-year-old Christian grandmother…
The Faithful Joy of Dolly Parton and Fulton Sheen
Dolly Parton and Fulton Sheen seem to have had little in common. She favored rhinestones; he wore…
