The Dream of a Democratic Culture [electronic resource] : Mortimer J. Adler and the Great Books Idea /
Lacy, T.author.
This book presents a moderately revisionist history of the great books idea anchored in the following movements and struggles: fighting anti-intellectualism, advocating for the liberal arts, distributing cultural capital, and promoting a public philosophy, anchored in mid-century liberalism, that fostered a shared civic culture.
Description based upon print version of record.
Cover; Title; Copyright; Contents; List of Figures; Introduction; 1 The Great Books Movement, 1920-1948; 2 Branding the History of Ideas: Adler, Lovejoy, and Britannica's Great Books, 1943-1952; 3 Making "Seventy-Four Corpses . . . Pay Off": The Context and Commerce of the Great Books, 1952-1968; 4 "Mixing Vice and Virtue": Adler, Britannica's Cottage Industry, and Mid-Century Anxiety; 5 The Common Sense of Great Books Liberalism, 1965-1970; 6 Diminished Dreams: Great Books in an Age of Crisis, Fracture, and Transition, 1968-1977
7 "The Poobah of Popularizers": Paideia, Pluralism, and the Culture Wars, 1978-19888 "The Most Rancorous Cultural War": Bloom, Adler, Stanford, and Britannica, 1988-2001; Coda and Conclusion: Lessons for the Twenty-First Century; Appendices; Notes; Index
Includes bibliographical references and index.
This book presents a moderately revisionist history of the great books idea anchored in the following movements and struggles: fighting anti-intellectualism, advocating for the liberal arts, distributing cultural capital, and promoting a public philosophy, anchored in mid-century liberalism, that fostered a shared civic culture.
Adler, Mortimer Jerome, 1902-2001.
Education—History.
Civilization—History.
Social history.
America—History.
United States—History.
History, Modern.
History of Education.
Cultural History.
Social History.
History of the Americas.
US History.
Modern History.