When Elders from the Past Speak of Present Circumstances

When Elders from the Past Speak of Present Circumstances

From Jacob Burckhardt’s (1818-1897) The Civilization of the Renaissance in Italy (1860):

Henceforth men looked only to antiquity for the solution of every problem, and consequently allowed literature to turn into mere quotation. Nay, the very fall of civil freedom is partly ascribed to all this, since the new learning rested on obedience to authority, sacrificed municipal rights to Roman law, and thereby both sought and found the favour of the despots.

And as I’ve pointed out before, the nineteenth chapter of Oliver Goldsmith’s (1728-1774) novel The Vicar of Wakefield (1766) is entitled:

“The description of a person discontented with the present government, and apprehensive of the loss of liberties.”

Looks like a good time to reread this #writer #reading #books #freespeech

A post shared by Christopher Landrum (@bookbread2) on Aug 16, 2017 at 12:40pm PDT