How to Save the West: Ancient Wisdom for 5 Modern Crises
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- Create Date：2023-02-26 00:20:28
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Spencer Klavan
- ISBN：1684513456
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Summary
A book to let you know you're not alone: the wisdom of the ages can guide us through the struggles of the present。 The fate of our civilization depends on whether ordinary people internalize the truth and beauty conveyed in the masterpieces of Western culture。 Spencer Klavan， classicist and podcaster， defends that culture and explains why and how we must hand it on to the next generation。
It has been proclaimed many times， but perhaps never more convincingly than now， when every news cycle seems to deliver further confirmation of a world gone mad。
Is this the endgame？ Have we come to closing time in the West？
Author Spencer Klavan is a classicist， with a Ph。D。 from Oxford， and a deep understanding of the West。 His analysis: The situation is dire。 But every crisis we face today， we have faced before。 And we can surmount each one。 Today’s “five essential crises” are:
• The Crisis of Reality: Is there such a thing as objective truth—and even if there is， can “virtual reality” replace it？
• The Crisis of the Body: Not just the “transgender” insanity， but the push for a “transhumanist” future
• The Crisis of Meaning: Evolution—both biological and cultural—is a process of endless replication， of copying。 But is there an original model that gives us an aspiration to aim for？ Do our lives and actions have meaning？
• The Crisis of Religion: Science has not eliminated man's religious impulse， but rather misdirected it—and wrongly dismissed the profound philosophical plausibility of Judeo-Christian revelation。
• The Crisis of the Regime: Has America reached a point of inevitable collapse？ Republican government was meant to end the destructive cycle of regimes rising and falling—but can it？
Klavan brings to the West’s defense the insights of Plato， Aristotle， the Bible， and the Founding Fathers to show that in the wisdom of the past lies hope for the future。 That wisdom can improve our own lives and the lives of those around us—and ultimately save the West。
It has been proclaimed many times， but perhaps never more convincingly than now， when every news cycle seems to deliver further confirmation of a world gone mad。
Is this the endgame？ Have we come to closing time in the West？
Author Spencer Klavan is a classicist， with a Ph。D。 from Oxford， and a deep understanding of the West。 His analysis: The situation is dire。 But every crisis we face today， we have faced before。 And we can surmount each one。 Today’s “five essential crises” are:
• The Crisis of Reality: Is there such a thing as objective truth—and even if there is， can “virtual reality” replace it？
• The Crisis of the Body: Not just the “transgender” insanity， but the push for a “transhumanist” future
• The Crisis of Meaning: Evolution—both biological and cultural—is a process of endless replication， of copying。 But is there an original model that gives us an aspiration to aim for？ Do our lives and actions have meaning？
• The Crisis of Religion: Science has not eliminated man's religious impulse， but rather misdirected it—and wrongly dismissed the profound philosophical plausibility of Judeo-Christian revelation。
• The Crisis of the Regime: Has America reached a point of inevitable collapse？ Republican government was meant to end the destructive cycle of regimes rising and falling—but can it？
Klavan brings to the West’s defense the insights of Plato， Aristotle， the Bible， and the Founding Fathers to show that in the wisdom of the past lies hope for the future。 That wisdom can improve our own lives and the lives of those around us—and ultimately save the West。
Reviews
Leilani W
，
A very partial and biased review from an unashamed LeftistI received this book through a Goodreads giveaway， and apparently should have paid more attention to the summary。 I was intrigued by the title， and didn't realize （though I probably should have） that it would be conservative claptrap。 Klavan's writing is good， and I appreciate the historical details。 He's clearly very knowledgeable regarding Greek and Roman history， and writes compellingly about those events and figures。 But I didn't see A very partial and biased review from an unashamed LeftistI received this book through a Goodreads giveaway， and apparently should have paid more attention to the summary。 I was intrigued by the title， and didn't realize （though I probably should have） that it would be conservative claptrap。 Klavan's writing is good， and I appreciate the historical details。 He's clearly very knowledgeable regarding Greek and Roman history， and writes compellingly about those events and figures。 But I didn't see a very strong connection between the history and his arguments。 It was mostly a history lesson， followed by conservative points that are loosely related to the previous discussion。 I certainly didn't see any actual justification for the conservative viewpoint or approach being provided by the historical accounts。 I did not wholly disagree with everything that was said here - for instance， I am also hesitant about embracing the metaverse， and don't think the answer to today's discontent is living an even more virtual life。 But in almost every way， I strongly disagree with many 'points' Klavan makes and how he connects it with 'ancient wisdom。' A few highlights of my read-through:- Klavan very quickly equates the BLM and Me Too movements with Nazism， Fascism， and Stalinism - stating that saying 'elevate black voices' or 'believe women' is a demand that one's "personal outlook be accepted as the baseline reality against which all other claims should be judged" （p 10） I object to this comparison。 You can't equate a request for equality with fascist dictatorships。 Requesting that attention be paid to systemically marginalized people to broaden the picture of our country to include other voices is not fascism。- Lol Hunter Biden - if you wanna talk about media outlets obfuscating problematic personal relationships with foreign power， I can think of some better examples- Chapter 3 - The Body Crisis - bemoaning the fact that women have the audacity not be sexy。 I quite like the expression "defiant ugliness，" though。 I do， however， have an issue with the stance that being ugly and media not censoring it is a fundamental "crisis" that is bringing down the Western world。 And it only took a couple pages for it to get transphobic， too。 I don't necessarily disagree that the increased level of discussion about gender dysphoria is allowing more people to recognize or explore their feelings about themselves， but i don't see this as a bad thing。 More conversation allows people who would normally have bottled it up and then potentially taken their own lives because of the disconnect are starting to be able to discuss things more openly and can realize they are not alone。 - Moved right into women eschewing traditional gender roles from the dysphoria conversation - very telling。 Does Klavan mostly care about women not wanting to be homemakers and mothers？ He says that not wanting to be a mother "closes off the most primal path to resolving the body crisis。 Women， by creating new life， bear witness to the possibility that the body and soul can in fact be reconciled: in childbirth， human flesh becomes the medium of the divine。" （P 50-51） Don't feel like a woman？ Pop out a baby！ That'll clear it up。 - Seems to state that gender affirming actions are not making people happy and are based on "wants that have no connection to goodness or joy，" essentially saying that there's no point。 Spends a lot of time talking about how pointless and wrong and inhuman it is to change your physical form。 That is， of course， with the implicit exception of fat people making themselves into thin people。 Most of the chapter left out the fat phobia after the first couple paragraphs， so the fact that it was included at all makes the rest of the points seem superficial as well。 Is the main argument against people not conforming to the gender binary that you don't think it's attractive？ - Tries to provide moral， philosophical reasons for beauty standards being universally right。 Suggests getting in better physical shape （i。e。 looking hotter） might help clear up gender dysphoria。- Presents marriage and motherhood as "things most women feel drawn to at a profound physical and spiritual level" （p 67） rather than societal expectations that girls are conditioned to see as correct and inevitable - Art/representation in media are expressed as two opposing schools of thought - The conservative Right's stance that things that have always been indecent and immoral should remain so （presented as morally upstanding， of course）， and the wishy-washy Left's split and conflicting view that we should talk about every sordid thing openly and constantly with no shame， but also "shy instinctively away from criticizing abnormal sexualities or acknowledging racial differences unless the comparison is favorable to black and brown people。" （P 98） The Left's view is， of course， simplistically exaggerated to the point of being ridiculous and unendurable for anyone who doesn't want their 5 year old singing Cardi B's WAP。 Also， i think the use of the term "abnormal sexualities" kind of speaks for itself in terms of where Klavan is coming from。 This whole book reeks of the "if I do it， it's right - if I don't do it， it's wrong" mindset。- Part 4: Religion - I am not going to wade too deeply into this section， because my underlying view is that Christianity is not the answer to any of the West's crises。 Religious fanaticism is， in my view， a large part of the cause of today's turmoil。 Even though Klavan doesn't specifically state that the religion you choose should be Christianity （despite the fact that almost everything he says is absolutely steeped in recognizable traditional conservative Christian ethos）， he does say that you should absolutely have a religion， and that all of life is meaningless without a belief in God。 I object to that on a fundamental level。 If we're trying to make a point about the importance of religion in maintaining a society， I think more time should have been spent talking about the structure and value a religion can provide， the benefits and moral imperatives of living by the values of the religion， and urging readers not to take extremist views that hurt others and society as a whole。- Klavan states that Marxism mutated in America to not be about class， but about other cultural markers， such as race。 This， of course， misses the point that race is a very good indicator of what Marx would have considered a class due to the systemic oppression of black and brown people， and the systemic privilege provided to white people。 He also says that the leftists resort to rioting and destruction more readily than their conservative counterparts， which I disagree with。 Much of the destruction and damage caused at BLM and other protests was initiated and perpetrated by law enforcement agencies （historically and fundamentally conservative institutions）。 Also， i seem to remember a bit of hullabaloo in Washington DC on January 6th that showed just how eager the Right is to do some damage。 。。。more
Jane
，
Remarkable！He made many outstanding points in this book。 Some of them I’d not thought about before， quite a few I had， most all I agree with wholeheartedly。 I was ready for the book to be rather didactic， as he can come across that way at times， but this wasn’t that way at all。 I didn’t feel as if I’d been sat in class for five hours， nor did I get a bit sleepy ;） 。 Thank you for your wonderful book， Mr。 Klavan， the younger （no relation to the elder）。
Lisa
，
Added to books I bought instead of the one written by the dumb prince and his stupid wife。
Matthew
，
3 1/2 starsThe bottom line: I wanted to like this book a lot more than I actually did。 Not sure I would recommend it to most。 First， I love ancient classical history， so the concept of the book caught my eye from the start。 And it is not bad。 The section on Socrates is good。 But interestingly， the author is clearly Christian （nothing wrong with that） and keeps inserting his arguments for his religious views in ways that I found odd。 Not all of his ancient wisdom is pre-Christian （although the ma 3 1/2 starsThe bottom line: I wanted to like this book a lot more than I actually did。 Not sure I would recommend it to most。 First， I love ancient classical history， so the concept of the book caught my eye from the start。 And it is not bad。 The section on Socrates is good。 But interestingly， the author is clearly Christian （nothing wrong with that） and keeps inserting his arguments for his religious views in ways that I found odd。 Not all of his ancient wisdom is pre-Christian （although the majority is）， and I just was not convinced by the author's attempts to insert his overlay。 （NOTE: He tries， and starts successfully， to state that he is not trying to make a specific religious argument， but by the end his open pleas for his faith fill almost every page。） The section claiming the Marvel Cinematic Universe's film interpretation of the "multiverse" is actually representative the claims of modern physics is a bit of a straw man argument。 （Although his more valid point is that the narrative vitality， overall impact and meaning of a multi-verse storyline are compromised and less impactful if every outcome can be undone by playing with a multi-verse of infinite-but-equal universes。。。）My favorite section is the the author's concluding chapters which deal with Polybius and his theory of anacylosis （the cycles of government） and the theory's impact on the American system。 However， while I found the book interesting - I did not enjoy it to the point where I would make a strong recommendation to others。 。。。more
Marcas
，
A wonderful read on the wisdom needed， today。 This is perhaps my favourite book of the last year。 In part because Spencer has his finger on the pulse of both intellectual history and pop culture。 He has discerned and admirably distilled the biggest challenges we face in the twenty first century。 Better yet， he has many antidotes at hand - informed by his devoted studies of the Classics。 He transcends simplistic labels， for those put off by a catchy title like this， and his book avoids being undu A wonderful read on the wisdom needed， today。 This is perhaps my favourite book of the last year。 In part because Spencer has his finger on the pulse of both intellectual history and pop culture。 He has discerned and admirably distilled the biggest challenges we face in the twenty first century。 Better yet， he has many antidotes at hand - informed by his devoted studies of the Classics。 He transcends simplistic labels， for those put off by a catchy title like this， and his book avoids being unduly reactive or angry。This book is not merely a nostalgic screed but a positive vision of the good life， focused on reintegrating the arts， the polis and the human person。Dr Klavan's a great writer， who reaches to the ends and fundamental purposes of reason itself， individual and communal， at a time when utilitarianism reigns。 Going beyond a 'chronological snobbery' which sees Darwin's work as the origin of civilised species， Spencer sojourns through history and shares antique insights that we can still use as tools for real life。 The through line runs from Plato's Cave， to the problems with Transhumanism， to the eternal truths by which we must live。The section on the political significance of friendship was excellent and apropos for a culture struggling with antagonistic tribalism。 If we live these patterns out in our communities， we will be much better off and can restore society beyond the state and market。 On this point， he reminded me of the late， Jonathan Sacks。 Thankfully， we don't have to start from scratch。 We have what we need to get going。 The renewal of Classical Education， especially in the U。S。A。， provides a shining example of how， and affirms the arguments of this book。 Despite the difficult topics addressed in the How to Save the West， this message of Hope is consistent in Klavan。For more， feel free to check out my interview with Dr Klavan:https://www。youtube。com/watch？v=tCfvV。。。 。。。more
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流亡西藏 侵略西藏 待劫之河