Philosophy FIRST PRINCIPLES examines the flaws and broken promises of modernism, and hopes for renewal in traditionalism First Principles A RETURN TO HUMANITY'S SHARED TRADITIONS Donald Foy The central spiritual conflict of our time is the struggle between modernism and traditionalism, and the debate over which should be our guide Many modern conflicts appear intractable because they are hotspots in a larger cold war between entirely different frames of reference Only by unearthing and examining the divergent frames can we begin to see which will work better for us “Thy will be done” versus “My will be done”: according to First Principles, modernism and traditionalism differ principally in where they locate the source of values Modernism believes in an internal, subjective source; it appeals to the ego, and its promises have captured the popular imagination; but its actual practice reveals its destructiveness Traditionalism believes in an external, objective source: “God” (or gods) Traditionalism is not about traditions, per se — preserving old ways or keeping old rituals — but about dedicating ourselves to Objective Reality’s plan Many people sense that something is deeply wrong; First Principles is a tool that can help them clarify the problem Part One defines and contrasts modernism and traditionalism; Part Two explores the contradictions that make modernism destructive; and Part Three examines and advocates the set of values that C S Lewis identifies as common to all humanity Donald Foy FIRST PRINCIPLES * Donald Foy is a teacher at an alternative school in Wisconsin Seeing the sad effects modernism has had on today’s family, he has seized upon the principles set out by C S Lewis as an antidote to relativism in a diverse world First Principles will be a welcome guide for people who want to hold the line against modernism’s effects in their community and family, and it will help clarify central issues for people of faith Algora Publishing Algora Algora 397 5.50 x 8.50 FIRST PRINCIPLES FIRST PRINCIPLES A Return to Humanity's Shared Traditions Don Foy Algora Publishing New York © 2004 by Algora Publishing All Rights Reserved www.algora.com No portion of this book (beyond what is permitted by Sections 107 or 108 of the United States Copyright Act of 1976) may be reproduced by any process, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form, or by any means, without the express written permission of the publisher ISBN: 0-87586-258-6 (softcover) ISBN: 0-87586-259-4 (hardcover) ISBN: 0-87586-202-0 (ebook) Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Foy, Don, 1945The first principles : a return to humanity's shared tradition / Don Foy p cm Includes bibliographical references ISBN 0-87586-259-4 (hardcover : alk paper) — ISBN 0-87586-258-6 (trade paper : alk paper) — ISBN 0-87586-202-0 (Ebook) Values Ethical relativism United States—Moral conditions Civilization, Modern—Moral and ethical aspects I Title BJ1031.F66 2003 148—dc22 2003027401 Printed in the United States The Roman Empire had raised science, prosperity, and power to their ancient peaks The decay of the Empire in the West, the growth of poverty and the spread of violence, necessitated some new ideal and hope to give men consolation in their suffering and courage in their toil; an age of power gave way to an age of faith Not till wealth and pride should return in the Renaissance would reason reject faith, and abandon heaven for utopia But if, thereafter, reason should fail, and science should find no answers, but should multiply knowledge and power without improving conscience or purpose; if all utopias should brutally collapse in the changeless abuse of the weak by the strong: then men would understand why once their ancestors, in the barbarism of those early Christian centuries, turned from science, knowledge, power, and pride, and took refuge for a thousand years in humble faith, hope, and charity Will Durant “The beauty parlor’s filled with sailors, The circus is in town” Bob Dylan, “Desolation Row” TABLE OF CONTENTS I WHERE IS THE CONFLICT? II ROUSSEAU, TWO LEWISES, AND MOUNT OLYMPUS 15 III INVERSIONS, GANGS, AND GULLIVER 31 IV “HOBBS WAS RIGHT” 43 V PINKER’S UNLOVELY LIST 55 VI THE SELLING OF PERSONAL GROWTH DIVORCE 65 VII WHY MARRIAGE DOESN’T TRANSLATE 81 VIII THE INVISIBLE HAND AS PICKPOCKET 95 IX THE NEW ARISTOCRATS 103 X PUZZLED BY POSTMODERNISM 129 XI WHAT ARE THE FIRST PRINCIPLES? 135 XII THE FIRST-PRINCIPLED SOCIETY 149 AFTERWORD 153 APPENDIX I 155 APPENDIX II 157 BIBLIOGRAPHY 159 XI What are the First Principles? Some refinement of the Tao or First Principles is a possibility, but can be legitimately done only from within Americans should be able to see the parallel with the United States Constitution, which provides for its own amendment process In particular instances it may, no doubt, be a matter of some delicacy to decide where the legitimate internal criticism ends, and the fatal external kind begins But whenever any precept of traditional morality is simply challenged to produce its credentials, as though the burden of proof lay on it, we have taken the wrong position I am simply arguing that if we are to have values at all, we must accept the ultimate platitudes of Practical Reason [the First Principles] as having absolute validity: that any attempt, having become skeptical about these, to reintroduce value lower down on some supposedly more “realistic” basis, is doomed.94 94 Ibid., p 57 147 XII THE FIRST-PRINCIPLED SOCIETY What would a society that really paid attention to the First Principles look like, and how far are we from such a society just now? If asked, most modernists would probably be horrified at the thought They’d envision the Taliban and Nazi Germany, Stalinist Russia, Mao’s China, or Pol Pot’s Cambodia to use as a boogieman to call forth whenever anyone wants to go in a direction other than toward radical liberty for the individual The modernists see themselves as the keepers of the road to utopia They have their picture of it painted on the inside of their windshield, so they fail to see all the realities along the way that show where they’re really going We’ve discussed some of the big realities, jobs, marriages, and so on, but there are telling little realities too: Once our streets were safe Today that seems remote, historically and psychologically The idea is almost an object of scorn “We’re not in Kansas anymore.” We’re proud of it, mesmerized by the drama and spectacle of our own decay Once the broadcast media inhabited a verbal and intelligence level that, while still pretty basic for its time, would almost be college-course material today 149 Remember Francis Fukuyama’s, “The perceived breakdown of social order is not a matter of nostalgia, poor memory, or ignorance about the hypocrisies of earlier ages.”95 There is no way that we should or could “go back” to some past time, nor should we overlook the real abuses that existed in more virulent forms in the past Life and history not stand still; new peoples, ideas, events, and technologies step onto the stage But none of that makes our experiment with moral relativism (or “moral pluralism,” as it is now sometimes called) any less destructive For those who see a return to the First Principles as a Uturn into authoritarianism, there is probably no reassurance Even if the path we’re on now delivers us to a debacle of incompetence, violence, and crude visceral gratification, the “innovators” will still proclaim victory because we’d be “free.” Nevertheless, the First Principles can be enculturated within political democracy If they enjoyed wide acceptance, there would be, no doubt, social censure of a number of things that are common today But social censure is a legitimate way, perhaps one of the most legitimate ways, to curb activities that have negative social impacts The modernists use it today to combat smoking and intolerance Too bad their targets are so ideologically selective A First-Principles based society certainly wouldn’t be a utopia, but it would give people the ability to look in the right places for solutions It would return humanity’s heart to itself Some might be confused by this criticism of modernism which at one moment looks like an attack on the Left from the Right, and at other times looks like the reverse In this apparently dual nature of the complaint, we may be able to make out the form of the remedy 95 Fukuyama, 1999, p 56 XII The First-Principled Society Lewis describes it like this: If there were such a society in existence and you or I visited it, I think we should come away with a curious impression We should feel that its economic life was very socialistic and, in that sense “advanced,” but that its family life and that its code of manners were rather old fashioned, perhaps even ceremonious and aristocratic Each of us [such as we are now] would like some bits of it, but I am afraid very few of us would like the whole thing.96 Still, the First Principles are ironically our one vehicle to a viable multiculturalism They are the “overarching moral/social standard which has muscle enough to be effective, and yet fits our goal of inclusiveness.” In the most general meaning of the term, the problem and solution is religious It involves the proper relationship of humanity to the sacred, and humanity to itself 96 Lewis, 1971, p 80 151 AFTERWORD The preceding is meant to be neither an indictment nor a crusade Millions of kind, good people who are sincerely trying their best would fit into the category this work would call “modernists.” I not want to attack them or detract from their efforts Most of us are trying our best I do, however, want to attack a philosophy; a philosophy I call “modernism,” which, like an epidemic, can disable even good friends The issues touched upon in this little work have been only that: touched upon There are volumes latent in every change of topic My purpose is not to go into exhaustive, incontestable depth, but to sketch out the changed landscape we live in I hope others might delve into particular veins and take the discussion further 153 APPENDIX I The First Principles as listed and the C.S Lewis versions from which they are taken (in parentheses) 1.) Obey the Spirit of Truth (Taken generally from Lewis’s whole presentation.) 2.) Do good and be helpful to others (The “Law of General Beneficence,” and the “Law of Mercy.”) 3.) Provide for and cherish parents, elders, and ancestors (“Duty to Parents, Elders and Ancestors.”) 4.) Provide for and cherish children and posterity (“Duty to Children and Posterity.”) 5.) Take special care of family and friends (“Law of Special Beneficence.”) 6.)Be just and trustworthy in private and public life (“Law of Justice,” and “The Law of Good Faith and Veracity.”) 7.)Be brave for the Good (“Law of Magnanimity.”) 8.)Restrain appetites and desires for the sake of the Good (“Law of Justice,” “Sexual Justice,” and “Law of Magnanimity.”) 155 APPENDIX II C.S Lewis’s List of First Principles (“Illustrations of the Tao”) I.The Law of General Beneficence II.The Law of Special Beneficence III.Duties of Parents, Elders, Ancestors IV.Duties to Children and Posterity V.The Law of Justice a Sexual Justice b Honesty c Justice in Court &c VI.The Law of Good Faith and Veracity VII.The Law of Mercy VIII.The Law of Magnanimity pp 95-12197 97 Lewis, 1961, pp 95-121 157 BIBLIOGRAPHY The Holy Bible (King James Version), Cleveland: The World Publishing Company Center for Civic Education We the People Charles N Quigley, Duane E Smith, Jane G Sure (eds.) Calabasas, CA: 1998 Chesterton, G.K., Orthodoxy, the Romance of Faith New York: Image Books, 1990 Dafoe-Whitehead, Barbara “Dan Quayle Was Right,” The Atlantic Monthly Boston: Atlantic Monthly Company, April 1993 Dawood, N J (translator), The Koran New York: Penguin Books, 1999 Durant, Will, The Age of Faith New York: Simon and Schuster, 1950 Ehrenreich, Barbara Nickel and Dimed, On (not) Getting by in America New York: Metropolitan Books, Henry Holt and Company, 2001 Finkelstein, Israel, & Silberman, Neil Asher, The Bible Unearthed, New York, Free Press, Simon and Schuster, 2001 Fone, Byrne Homophobia, A History New York: Metropolitan Books, Henry Holt and Company, 2000 Fukuyama, Francis “The Great Disruption,” The Atlantic Monthly Boston: Atlantic Monthly Company, May, 1999 Galbraith, James K “Why Bush Likes a Bad Economy.” The Progressive, October, 2003, (pp 20-23) Gillespie, Peggy, and Kaeser, Gigi Love Makes a Family, Portraits of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Parents and Their Families Amherst: University of Massachusetts Press, 1999 159 First Principles Ginsberg, Alan Howl San Francisco: City Lights Books, 1967 Heatherington, E Mavis, and Kelly, John For Better or Worse, Divorce Reconsidered New York: W.W Norton & Company Himmelfarb, Gertrude One Nation, Two Cultures New York: Alfred A Knopf, 1999 Horowitz, David Destructive Generation, Second Thoughts About the ‘60s New York: Summit Books, 1990 Kunc, Norman “The Need to Belong: Rediscovering Maslow’s Heirarchy of Needs.” Restructuring for Caring & Effective Education Villa, R., Thousand, J., Stainback, W & Stainback, S Baltimore: Paul Brooks, 1992 Lacey, Robert The Life and Times of Henry VIII New York: Welcome Rain, 1998 La Crosse Tribune Lewis, C.S The Abolition of Man New York: MacMillan Company, 1961 Lewis, C.S Mere Christianity New York: MacMillan Company, 1971 Lewis, Sinclair Main Street New York: Signet Classics, 1980 Ludtke, Melissa On Our Own, Unmarried Motherhood in America New York: Random House, 1997 Mishel, L., Bernstein, J & Boushey, H The State of Working America 2002/2003 Ithaca, New York: Cornell University Press, 2003 Newman, Ian Blake “In a Family Way.” Utne Reader, Jan - Feb 2003 Pinker, Stephen “The Blank Slate,” The Modern Denial of Human Nature New York: Viking, 2002 Sewell, Gilbert “The Postmodern Schoolhouse,” Dumbing Down, Essays on the Srtip Mining of American Culture Washburn, K & Thornton, J., ed New York: W W Norton & Company, 1996 Spengler, Oswalt The Decline of the West (Vol II) New York: Alfred A Knopf, 1926 Strobel, F Upward Dreams, Downward Mobility Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc., 1993 Sweeney, John J America Needs a Raise: Fighting for Economic Security and Social Justice Boston, New York: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1996 Swift, Jonathan Gulliver’s Travels Into Several Remote Nations of the World London: Temple Press, 1939 160 Bibliography Thurer, Shari The Myths of Motherhood New York: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1994 Tocqueville, Alexis Democracy in America New York: Alfred A Knopf, 1972 Wallerstein, Judith, Lewis, Julia, and Blakeslee, Sandra The Unexpected Legacy of Divorce, A 25-Year Landmark Study New York: Hyperion, 2000 Wilson, James Q The Marriage Problem, How Our Culture Has Weakened Families New York: Harper Collins, 2002 Zirpoli, Thomas J., & Melloy, Kristine, J Behavioral Management, Applications for Teachers Upper Saddle River, N.J Columbus, Ohio: Merrill, Prentice Hall, 2001 161 ... their toil; an age of power gave way to an age of faith Not till wealth and pride should return in the Renaissance would reason reject faith, and abandon heaven for utopia But if, thereafter, reason...Philosophy FIRST PRINCIPLES examines the flaws and broken promises of modernism, and hopes for renewal in traditionalism First Principles A RETURN TO HUMANITY''S SHARED TRADITIONS Donald Foy The central... destructive; and Part Three examines and advocates the set of values that C S Lewis identifies as common to all humanity Donald Foy FIRST PRINCIPLES * Donald Foy is a teacher at an alternative school