Confessions of a Heretic, Revised Edition
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- Author：Roger Scruton
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Summary
A collection of provocative essays by the influential social commentator， Roger Scruton。 Scruton explores the conflict between the Christian-inspired Enlightenment and Islam， and attempts to find a remedy for the void at the heart of our civilisation。 Why do we capitulate before everyone more ignorant than ourselves？ Why do we turn immediately on all those who wish to defend our rooted values against whatever invading force has appeared over the horizon？ These hard-hitting essays from a profound intellect threaten the bedrock of conventional opinion。
Reviews
Pastor Ben
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A slender book， but full of interesting thoughts about the modern West。 Worth reading and re-reading。
Joseph Hamilton
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This book has an excellent introduction by Douglas Murray， a eulogy to Roger Scruton really。 Liberals should probably avoid this book since it will seriously weaken the foundation of their beliefs。
Wal Lajoia
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Um ano pra ler esse livro。 É bom？ É。 Mas coletâneas de artigos， redações， poemas， etc não são pra mim。 E， por incrível que pareça já que não sou muito fã de capítulos curtinhos， acho que vários dos artigos poderiam ser dois ou três capítulos。 Eles abordam um tema principal， mas as tangentes funcionariam bem em um formato independente e as vezes fazem com que você esqueça qual era o tópico até chegar a conclusão。
Stanley Turner
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Excellent I have read several of Sir Roger’s books and have enjoyed them all， this one is no exception。 Several of the essays I highlighted numerous passages， while others only a passage or two。 The last essay on the issues within the Islamic community is highly informative。 Highly recommended。。。SLT
Matthew
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Everything by Roger Scruton is worth reading。
Eric Harrough
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Masterful。
Rodrigo Pereira
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Mais uma bela coletânea de artigos de Roger Scruton。 A profundidade das reflexões e o conhecimento dele são sublimes。
Mikko Arevuo
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This is a collection of provocative essays by late Roger Scruton， a conservative philosopher and social commentator。 This wide selection of essays spans Scruton's formidable contribution to Western philosophy and social issues。 He seeks to answer some of the pressing problems of our age: What can be done to protect Western values against Islamic extremism？ How can we nurture real friendship in the age of social media？ How should societies be governed rightly？ How to think about environmentalism？ This is a collection of provocative essays by late Roger Scruton， a conservative philosopher and social commentator。 This wide selection of essays spans Scruton's formidable contribution to Western philosophy and social issues。 He seeks to answer some of the pressing problems of our age: What can be done to protect Western values against Islamic extremism？ How can we nurture real friendship in the age of social media？ How should societies be governed rightly？ How to think about environmentalism？This is not an easy read and I ended up rereading some of the 12 essays and paragraphs contained in the short book several times。 To fully appreciate the book， I provide a synopsis of Scruton's thinking that form the basis for the essays in this volume。 Best known for his writing in support of conservatism， Scruton's intellectual heroes were Edmund Burke， Coleridge， Dostoevsky， Hegel， Ruskin， and T。 S。 Eliot。 He supported Margaret Thatcher， while remaining sceptical of her view of the market as a solution to everything。Scruton was persuaded that， as he put it， the utopian promises of socialism are accompanied by an abstract vision of the mind that bears little relation to the way most people think。 He was also convinced that there is no direction to history， no moral or spiritual progress; that people think collectively toward a common goal only during crises such as war， and that trying to organise In his book Arguments for Conservatism （2006）， Scruton marked out the areas in which philosophical thinking is required if conservatism is to be intellectually persuasive。 He argued that human beings are creatures of limited and local affections。 Territorial loyalty is at the root of all forms of government where law and liberty reign supreme; every expansion of jurisdiction beyond the frontiers of the nation state leads to a decline in accountability。 He opposed elevating the "nation" above its people， which would threaten rather than facilitate citizenship and peace。 "Conservatism and conservation" are two aspects of a single policy， that of husbanding resources， including the social capital embodied in laws， customs and institutions， and the material capital contained in the environment。 He argued further that the law should not be used as a weapon to advance special interests。 People impatient for reform — for example in the areas of euthanasia or abortion — are reluctant to accept what may be "glaringly obvious to others — that the law exists precisely to impede their ambitions。"Scruton defines post-modernism as the claim that there are no grounds for truth， objectivity， and meaning， and that conflicts between views are therefore nothing more than contests of power。 Scruton argued that， while the West is required to judge other cultures in their own terms， Western culture is adversely judged as ethnocentric and racist。 He wrote: "The very reasoning which sets out to destroy the ideas of objective truth and absolute value imposes political correctness as absolutely binding， and cultural relativism as objectively true。" 。。。more
Tyler
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Really good read and Roger Scruton's insight as to the conservation of communities， environment， and architecture is profound。 In a few of his other essays he makes certain claims that are either really broad strokes and generalized without backing them up extensively - the arguments are good enough to affirm somebodies position if it's already in line with his own - but I imagine they do very little to convince someone that holds a different position。 Roger Scruton passed away only days ago whi Really good read and Roger Scruton's insight as to the conservation of communities， environment， and architecture is profound。 In a few of his other essays he makes certain claims that are either really broad strokes and generalized without backing them up extensively - the arguments are good enough to affirm somebodies position if it's already in line with his own - but I imagine they do very little to convince someone that holds a different position。 Roger Scruton passed away only days ago while I was reading his chapter on "Dying in Time" - needless to say it changed the way that I read that chapter as it held a certain extra significance。 。。。more
Oakleigh
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The first chapter， on Faking It， was extraordinary。 I was taken aback by its prescience and hard hitting truth。 Loving Animals confirmed my opinion exactly; Governing Rightly really made me think。 But， after that， the chapters on dancing， architecture and social media felt entirely overblown and the lofty air of wisdom became stale。 I am typically attracted to controversy but this became less radical and more berating as the chapters went on。 Scruton letting off steam， raging against the mindles The first chapter， on Faking It， was extraordinary。 I was taken aback by its prescience and hard hitting truth。 Loving Animals confirmed my opinion exactly; Governing Rightly really made me think。 But， after that， the chapters on dancing， architecture and social media felt entirely overblown and the lofty air of wisdom became stale。 I am typically attracted to controversy but this became less radical and more berating as the chapters went on。 Scruton letting off steam， raging against the mindless gyrating youth。。。 I gave up at chapter 9。 。。。more
Linda Mock
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Scruton is possibly the most undervalued and maligned intellect of our time。 It's a shame， because if more people read him and engaged honestly with what he is saying， they could potentially become more like him， and that would be good for everyone。 Scruton is possibly the most undervalued and maligned intellect of our time。 It's a shame， because if more people read him and engaged honestly with what he is saying， they could potentially become more like him， and that would be good for everyone。 。。。more
Graychin
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Scruton at his best is very good （see his Conservatism）， but this is a mixed bag。 His prose is of an inconsistent quality。 His ideas， however， are generally worthwhile， though not always exciting。 For the record， he isn’t much of a heretic， not at all worth burning at the stake。 At least not by my standards。
Greg Benham
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An excellent introduction to Scrutonian thinking。
Rebecca
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This is a thoroughly weird book。 He shares concerns and ideas with which I agree--the awkward question of end of life choices and conservation of natural resources--which I have always been confused by the conservative allergy to as it has conserve I'm the name。 But somewhere in all these essays he makes a hard right turn into places I do not want to go。 He advocates an intentional sort of self neglect and dangerous activities as you age so you avoid the prospect of becoming a faded shadow in a This is a thoroughly weird book。 He shares concerns and ideas with which I agree--the awkward question of end of life choices and conservation of natural resources--which I have always been confused by the conservative allergy to as it has conserve I'm the name。 But somewhere in all these essays he makes a hard right turn into places I do not want to go。 He advocates an intentional sort of self neglect and dangerous activities as you age so you avoid the prospect of becoming a faded shadow in a chair waiting for death。 He puts all blame squarely for lack of environmental protection on the government and argues that if the state butted out completely individual enterprise would have to face resource depletion and come to solutions。 He makes a valid point about the failures of suburbs and the gutting of city centers for highways and projects which was full of unsustainable， unkind， impractical， and racist choices。 However， he completely ignores the fact that our public commons include air and water and currently private enterprise is depleting water tables in India because unrestricted by the state and that it were not for government rules on emissions， our cars would spew more of them。 Even now people living close to certain private enterprise suffer from higher rates of disease because of toxic emissions。 It seems to me the best thing to say is that both government and private enterprise must share the blame and responsibility for our environment and trying to force all the blame on one party would be a mistake。 Those are just my thoughts on one essay。 He cites as facts things which he believes but for which he cites no proofs or evidence and builds straw men leftists rather than quote real arguments made by thinkers on the left。 I will not bother to find any more books by this author。 。。。more
Adam Marischuk
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Surpassing the genreI expected this book to be good but not great， something like Wendel Berry， Roger Shattuck or Richard Weaver。 All essays with glimmers of brilliance but lacking the depth of longer format writings。 However， Roger Scruton's writing is very much like Chesterton's in that they both start from what seems a counter-intuitive premise and advance in their argument to the point where the audience begins to see the world in a new light but a rather old way。 It is like seeing something Surpassing the genreI expected this book to be good but not great， something like Wendel Berry， Roger Shattuck or Richard Weaver。 All essays with glimmers of brilliance but lacking the depth of longer format writings。 However， Roger Scruton's writing is very much like Chesterton's in that they both start from what seems a counter-intuitive premise and advance in their argument to the point where the audience begins to see the world in a new light but a rather old way。 It is like seeing something for the first time that you have seen every day but never noticed。 A true defense of common sense， which is rare in philosophy and even rarer in the West these days。As for the style of Scruton， I don't think it is either too much of an insult or too much a compliment to compare him to Chesterton。 Both Chesterton and Scruton have found their voice and use it effectively。 Chesterton's writings read as if you are hearing him on a soap-box in Hyde Park and Scruton reads like you are sitting with him by a fire with a glass of whiskey （or Port） in hand。 Both are essentially witty but the humour is used to advance the argument and keep the audience entertained rather than replace the argument， which is the problem with many rhetoricians。Each individual essay touches on a contemporary topic that is of permanent interest and importance。 Even chapters which are far from my normal interests managed to resonate and because the chapter/essays stay at or under 20 pages， the theme never gets too drawn out。The essays are:1） Faking it （on modern art in society）"Artists and critics get together to take themselves in， the artists posing as the originators of astonishing breakthroughs， the critics posing as the penetrating judges of the true avant-garde。" （p。 3）"anything is art because nothing is" （p。 4）"Paintings and sculptures can be owned， bought and sold。 Hence there is a vast market in them， and whether or not they have a value， they certainly have a price。" （p。 12。。。and yes， he credits Oscar Wilde for the insight）"In art beauty has to be won。。。Real art is a work of love， fake art is a work of deception。" （p。 16-17）2） Loving Animals （on returning to balance in relationships）"Now it seems to me that the right way to love a dog is to love him not as a person， but as a creature。。。" （p。 28） "From a dog， therefore， we can enjoy the kind of endorsement that requires no moral labour to earn it。 And this is what we see all around us， the dwindling of human affection。" （p。 29）"Devoted animals provide an escape route from human affection， and so make that affection superfluous。" （p。 31）3） Governing Rightly （on the conservative need for proper government）"A kind of hysteria of repudiation rages in European opinion-forming circles， picking one by one on the old and settled customs of a two-thousand-year-old civilisation， and forbidding them or distorting them into some barely-recognisable caricature。" （p。 35）"Conservativism should be a defence of government， against its abuse by liberals。" （p。 44）"welfare policies may lead to the creation of a socially dysfunctional underclass。" （p。 45）4） Dancing Properly （on how music and dance have abandoned form）"Their fear of conversation， lack of small talk， and general clumsiness， are the natural result of the education to which they have been exposed， which is directed to removing all ideas of elegance， distinction or grace from their behaviour。" （p。 53）"[regarding true music] There is no violent drumming， no amplified bass， none of the devices which- I am tempted to say- substitute for rhythm in so much contemporary pop。" （p。 61）"a grotesque caricature of music in which rhythm is mere beat and melody mere repetition。" （p。 61）5） Building to Last （modern architecture and a need to return to organic living）"the miracle of a town like Paris is to be explained only by the fact that few modern architects have been allowed to get their hands on it。" （p。 65-66）"the work of the Luffwaffe had in many cities been brought near to completion by the post-war planners。" （p。 68）"Modernist vandals like Richard Rogers and Norman Foster。。。live in elegant old houses in charming locations" （p。 71）"the exceptional building is designed。。。 to stand out rather than blend in。" （p。 76）"the real meaning of the modernist forms is that there is no God， that meaning has fled from the world， and that Big Brother is now in charge。" （p。 79）"Exile is what the collectivist utopias promissed， home lies in the opposite direction。" （p。 82）"Most of these starchitects。。。have equipped themselves with a store of pretentious gobbledegook， with which to explain their genius to those who are otherwise unable to perceive it。" （p。 82）"they authorize what would otherwise look like vandalism on a massive scale" （p。 84）6） Effing the Ineffable （philosophers knowing when to shut up。。。a gracefully and eloquently short 4 pages）"The history of philosophy abounds in thinkers who， having concluded that the truth is ineffable， have gone on to write pages upon pages about it。" （p。 86）7） Hiding Behind the Screen （much like the animal chapter， about how technology is damaging inter-personal relationships and thus full human development）"Everything that appears on the screen appears in competition。。。He is one of the many products on display" （p。 95）"I was taught that shyness is not a virtue but a defect， and it comes from placing too high a value on yourself" （p。 96）"Freedom involves an active engagement in the world， in which opposition is encountered and overcome， risks are taken and satisfactions weighed: it is， in short， an exercise in practical reason" （p。 100）8） Mourning our losses: Reflections on Strauss's Metamorphosen （German's destructive war-guilt）9） Branding the Bottle （Icons and Idols in the modern world）"Only what is consecrated can be desecrated" （p。 123）"The decline of religion has deprived us of sacred things。 But it has not deprived us of the need for them。" （p。 131）"The American flag has retained its aura。。。That is why people are always burning it。" （p。 131）10） Dying In Time （about euthanasia but approached from the virtues rather than a utilitarian or deontological perspective。。。this might be the one place where Scruton's distinction between person and human being causes a serious moral problem for me， see p。 145）"Greek sages told us to judge no man happy until he is dead。" （p。 136）"death is not the worst thing that can happen to us。" （p。 138）"This use of precious resources and precious human capital is hard to justify in utilitarian terms- which I take to be a criticism of utilitarianism， rather than a criticism of institutional care" （p。 143）"With courage a person can go about living in another way- a way that will give maximum chance of dying with his faculties intact。 This other way is not the way of the welfare culture。。。Of course you should drink， smoke， eat fatty foods， but not to the point of gluttony。 The point is to weaken the body while strengthening the mind。" （p。 149）"The main point， it seems to me， is to maintain a life of active risk and affection， while helping the body along the path of decay， remembering always that the value of life does not consist in its length but its depth。" （p。 150）11） Conserving Nature （on the environment， particularly urban sprawl and the proper conservative contribution to a solution）"Environmentalism has all the hallmarks of a left-wing cause: a class of victims，。。。an enlightened vanguard who fights for them，。。。 powerful philistines who exploit them，。。。 and endless opportunities to express resentment against the successful， the wealthy and the West。" （p。 151）"environmentalism is the quintessential conservative cause。。。that partnership between the dead， the living and the unborn" （p。 152）"the mistaken view that the market， not the state， that has created the problem" （p。 156）"look at the solutions that leftists， over the years， have admired， and you will surely learn to distrust their judgement" （p。 158-9）"The reason why the environmental movement has been captured by the left is that it lends itself to this ambition。 It provides terrifying scenarious which seem to justify the total overthrow of existing orders， while encouraging the kind of control from the top that would put enlightened leftists at last in charge of the endarkened middle class。" （p。 165）12） Defending the West （What makes the West and Islam incompatible or at least difficult to reconcile）Here Scruton has 7 features of the West which are absent or even antagonistic to Islam and he summarizes them on the last page:"make no concessions to those who wish us to exchange citizenship for subjecthood， nationality for religious conformity， secular law for Shari'ah， the Judeo-Christian inheritance for Islam， irony for solemnity， self-criticism for dogmatism， representation for submission， and cheerful drinking for censorious abstinence。" （p。 193-194） 。。。more
Dan Graser
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This is a very elegant collection of some of Scruton's best writing on a very wide variety of topics。 I wish that he and his publishers could quit the persecution complex， after all， it's quite hard to believe that you are shunned or remotely castigated by academia when you've occupied teaching positions for decades and had nearly 40 books published。 Anyway， at times feisty， polemic， or poetic; Scruton writes in very engaging and quite clear prose throughout。 At times he even manages to be quite This is a very elegant collection of some of Scruton's best writing on a very wide variety of topics。 I wish that he and his publishers could quit the persecution complex， after all， it's quite hard to believe that you are shunned or remotely castigated by academia when you've occupied teaching positions for decades and had nearly 40 books published。 Anyway， at times feisty， polemic， or poetic; Scruton writes in very engaging and quite clear prose throughout。 At times he even manages to be quite funny， except to cat owners that is: "The domestic cat is， without exception， the most devastating of all the alien species that have been brought onto our island， and the worst of it is that， thanks to the sentimentality of the British animal lover， it is a crime to shoot them。"Topics covered here included modern art/architecture， music， animal life in the countryside of Britain， dying and end of life care， conservation/climate change， as well as notions of the proper size of government。 Fun， quick reading that at times manages to be quite thought-provoking。 。。。more
Carleton Raisbeck
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Often dubbed as Britain's foremost conservative philosopher， in his recent collection of essays Confessions of Heretic Sir Roger Scruton's writes about many aspects of human life， giving suggestions as to how we might consider our behaviour and act in this world we have inherited。 The book consists of twelve essays on seemingly disparate subjects， ranging from the serious， such as nationality， governing rightly and nature conservation， to the more peripheral and superficial—but perhaps all the m Often dubbed as Britain's foremost conservative philosopher， in his recent collection of essays Confessions of Heretic Sir Roger Scruton's writes about many aspects of human life， giving suggestions as to how we might consider our behaviour and act in this world we have inherited。 The book consists of twelve essays on seemingly disparate subjects， ranging from the serious， such as nationality， governing rightly and nature conservation， to the more peripheral and superficial—but perhaps all the more important because of it—like dance， art， architecture and how we should love animals。 Known for being a prolific writer， and still writing one or two books a year in his seventies， with this release from 2016 he shows no signs of slowing。The BookIn a way you might expect a conservative to， he undertakes much criticism of leftism， arguing in favour of tradition， opposing change for change's sake， and encourages finding local solutions to local problems。 On the topic of dance in particular， he writes in favour of the traditional and learned dances in which any age can participate， like folk or ballroom， instead of the dancing we might see in night clubs today， which is "the natural result of the education to which they have been exposed。。。directed to removing all ideas of elegance， distinction or grace from their behaviour， those old fashioned virtues being judged elitist and politically correct。" A jab at the egalitarians， perhaps？He is also critical of conspicuous modern architecture with grand socialist ambitions to reorder our towns， writing that they "shovel（ing） people into housing estates"， and much of the buildings "seem to be modelled like a domestic utensil"， offering "shelter， but cannot make a home"。 And on the subject of environmentalism， it his view is that problems are made worse by the state， saying that it "interrupts the ways in which normal people solve their problems by free interaction。" And by "expropriating the paths of rational consensus--as they are expropriated by the state， whenever it uses its power of eminent domain" the state causes more harm than good。 Indeed， he has very little to say in favour of leftist thought。However， poo pooing does not an eminent philosopher make。 In interviews he says he regards part of his job as a writer and thinker to be one who 'gently affirms'， and this book has plenty of such affirmations。 Taking individual responsibility for one another and the area in which we live; recognising the goodness of national identity; appreciating beauty in artwork; seeking to live a brave life and a timely death; living with forgiveness of those who seek to harm us without hating them， as Christ would have us do--all make up positive aspects of this man's philosophy and gives one useful information as to how the conservative might see the world。One last thing。 The Nottinghill Editions publication I have is a hardback covered with a lovely blue material and， unusually but pleasantly， has the page numbers printed in red， which just makes a nice change。 I mean， I wouldn't like all my books to have red page numbers， but， you know， it's not bad every now and then， for a change。 Five stars。 。。。more
Germán
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One of the most beautifully contemporary-printed books I own
Luke
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An excellent collection of essays， where Scruton quite expertly and swiftly exposes the shortcomings of the Left as well as espousing unpopular opinions。 I don't agree with him on everything said in the collection - naturally so， given it is supposed to be the beliefs he was warned not to admit to - but it is still great reading and a challenge to my views。 Worth it。 An excellent collection of essays， where Scruton quite expertly and swiftly exposes the shortcomings of the Left as well as espousing unpopular opinions。 I don't agree with him on everything said in the collection - naturally so， given it is supposed to be the beliefs he was warned not to admit to - but it is still great reading and a challenge to my views。 Worth it。 。。。more
Andrew Fear
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Roger Scruton is always worth reading and this collection of essays is no exception。 There are good pieces here on the tawdry nature of much modern art， the right attitude towards animals （where to my joy I learnt that the author dislikes cats）， and much on building， planning， and environmentalism which Scruton rightly sees as a Conservative cause but one easily captured by the left。 There are also intriguing oddities such as the essay on social integration produced by dancing （something loathe） Roger Scruton is always worth reading and this collection of essays is no exception。 There are good pieces here on the tawdry nature of much modern art， the right attitude towards animals （where to my joy I learnt that the author dislikes cats）， and much on building， planning， and environmentalism which Scruton rightly sees as a Conservative cause but one easily captured by the left。 There are also intriguing oddities such as the essay on social integration produced by dancing （something loathe） I'm not sure that Scruton is right to say along with Krier that modern structural techniques necessarily lead to bad building - Gaudi after all hung the exterior of his buildings on invisible frames and they were intended to express the organic world in a way of which I think Scruton would approve。 Similarly I'm unsure that we would have a more caring attitude to waste disposal if it wasn't done by individuals rather than the council。 My feeling is that we would just have more fly tipping。 There's an interesting piece on Dying in Time and "living shabbily"， this makes a lot of sense for those of us in good health and fearful of what could happen in the future， but I thought it ducked the question of what can be done for those for whom this is no longer an option - those already dying slowly of terminal disease or senility。 The question of the ethics of euthanasia in such circumstances is evaded。 There is a good and timely piece at the end on the utter incompatibility of the Islamic world view with that of the west。 Scruton however is perhaps a little too kind towards Christianity。 In someways in tolerates western values not because it formed them but because it was captured and tamed by the west which molded it not vice versa。 Overall a good and stimulating read and plenty of references to allow you to explore more。 I certainly shall be looking up Len Krier。 。。。more
Matt Simmons
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A lovely collection of essays about a wide range of topics， including government， the environment， animals， architecture， art， and how we die。 This is the third book by Scruton that I've read; I've also read several uncollected essays， seen/listened to some interviews， lectures， etc。 While his Intelligent Person's Guide to Philosophy perhaps gives the more nuanced overview of his thought， this collection， in being less abstract and permitting his wit， charm， and sometimes-acid critiques to shine A lovely collection of essays about a wide range of topics， including government， the environment， animals， architecture， art， and how we die。 This is the third book by Scruton that I've read; I've also read several uncollected essays， seen/listened to some interviews， lectures， etc。 While his Intelligent Person's Guide to Philosophy perhaps gives the more nuanced overview of his thought， this collection， in being less abstract and permitting his wit， charm， and sometimes-acid critiques to shine through， reveals the essential touchstones and first principles of his thought clearly， cogently， and entertainingly。 Essentially， what we see in different ways and to different extents in every essay is an exploration of the relationship between an "I" and another "I。" In Scruton's thought， subjecthood is contingent upon the recognition of the subjecthood of others， and expected reciprocation of that recognition by others unto us。 From this "I" & "I" flows a concept of mutual obligation and duty， and a sense that statist， technocratic diktat and fiat destroys this "I" & "I" relationship， and thus undermines our status as thinking subjects--and ultimately our humanity。 All of Scruton's thinking in these essays seems to be based in some articulation of the relationship of a subject to other subjects， governed by mutual obligation and duty， and the way these first principles play out in considerations of art， environment， government， and the many more subjects he considers here are fascinating， challenging， and illuminating。 。。。more
Steve
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