John Wiley & Sons The War Against the Past Cover A war is being waged against the Past. Whether it's toppling statues, decolonising the curriculum or.. Product #: 978-1-5095-6125-4 Regular price: $28.88 $28.88 Auf Lager

The War Against the Past

Why The West Must Fight For Its History

Furedi, Frank

Cover

1. Auflage September 2024
272 Seiten, Hardcover
Sachbuch

ISBN: 978-1-5095-6125-4
John Wiley & Sons

Kurzbeschreibung

A war is being waged against the Past. Whether it's toppling statues, decolonising the curriculum or erasing terms from our vocabulary, a cultural crusade is underway designed to render the past toxic. It is condemned as enemy territory and has become the target of venomous hate. What is at stake in provoking such a strong sense of societal shame towards Western history?
In this book, Frank Furedi mounts a fierce defence of the past and calls for a fight back against the delegitimization of its ideals and accomplishments. Casting the past as a story of shame has become a taken-for granted outlook permeating the educational and cultural life of western society from the top down. Its advocates may see it as a cultural imperative, but a society that loses touch with its past will face a permanent crisis of identity. Squandering the wisdom provided by our historical inheritance means betraying humanity's positive achievements. Challenging this great betrayal, Furedi argues, is one of the most important battles of our time.

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A war is being waged against the Past. Whether it's toppling statues, decolonising the curriculum or erasing terms from our vocabulary, a cultural crusade is underway designed to render the past toxic. It is condemned as enemy territory and has become the target of venomous hate. What is at stake in provoking such a strong sense of societal shame towards Western history?
In this book, Frank Furedi mounts a fierce defence of the past and calls for a fight back against the delegitimization of its ideals and accomplishments. Casting the past as a story of shame has become a taken-for granted outlook permeating the educational and cultural life of western society from the top down. Its advocates may see it as a cultural imperative, but a society that loses touch with its past will face a permanent crisis of identity. Squandering the wisdom provided by our historical inheritance means betraying humanity's positive achievements. Challenging this great betrayal, Furedi argues, is one of the most important battles of our time.

Acknowledgments
Preface

Introduction
Chapter 1 What Is the Past?
Chapter 2 The War's Long Gestation
Chapter 3 The Ideology of Year Zero
Chapter 4 The Present Eternalised
Chapter 5 Identity and the Past
Chapter 6 The Struggle to Control Language
Chapter 7 Disinheriting The Young from Their Past
Conclusion

Notes
Bibliography
Index
"In this deeply researched and brilliantly written book, Frank Furedi shines a light on what is at stake in the current war against the past. Young people, deprived of their cultural heritage, are left confused and alienated. The achievements of human civilisation are trashed. What remains, if we do not stop this trend, is nihilism and despair. Furedi gives a clarion call to action."
Robert Tombs, University of Cambridge

"In this important book, Frank Furedi explains and also refutes the abuse of History by all thosewho are trying to use the past to further their narrow, ideological interests. Covering a wide range of issues in politics, the arts, language, and identity, this is a vital and timely defence of the objective study of the past and will be of relevance to everyone who values evidence and truth in our culture."
Lawrence Goldman, St. Peter's College, Oxford
Dr. Frank Furedi, author and social commentator is Emeritus Professor of Sociology at the University of Kent. Author of more than 26 books, Furedi's studies have been devoted to an exploration of the cultural developments in western societies. In recent years he has published several studies on the impact of the Culture Wars on family life, socialisation, education and public life. His most recent book, 100 Years of Identity Crisis, argues that it disrupts the socialisation of young people and encourages the estrangement of generations from one another.

His research has been oriented towards the way that risk and uncertainty is managed by contemporary culture. His two influential books, The Culture of Fear and Paranoid Parenting, investigated the interaction between risk consciousness and perceptions of fear, trust relations and social capital in contemporary society. His book How Fear Works: The Culture of Fear in the 21st Century (2018) explored the distinct features of contemporary fear culture.

F. Furedi, University of Kent