Not With a Bang But a Whimper: The Politics and Culture of Decline Kindle Edition

Not With a Bang But a Whimper is a collection of previously-published essays by Theodore Dalrymple (Dr. Anthony Daniels). Divided into two sections, “Artists and Ideologues” (8 essays) and “Politics and Culture” (11 essays), the pieces are unified in that Dalrymple’s social vision arises in each, sometimes peripherally, sometimes centrally. That vision is one in which postwar England has succumbed to devastating ideological tinkering (some of it well-meaning). The proud and independent English men and women of the past (indeed of the war era) have been replaced by individuals who have been corrupted by an entitlement culture whose educational system, medical system and justice system are all part of the problem rather than part of the solution. The government has stolen its citizens’ souls and left them to enjoy the ‘liberty’ of self-indulgence, even as it subjects them to surveillance, confiscatory taxation and a succession of liberal/progressive experiments. Individuals are no longer held responsible for their actions; students’ learning is subordinated to their ‘self esteem’; multiculturalist dogma is upheld in the face of recalcitrant reality.Dalrymple’s principal expertise is in medicine. A retired psychiatrist who has worked among the poor and the imprisoned speaks to the experience of his patients from first-hand knowledge. He is also a widely-read individual, capable of speaking with considerable authority on a host of subjects. When he enters the realm of literature, for example, he writes with the knowledge of an individual with graduate training at the master’s level. Two of the best essays here are on Samuel Johnson and the plays of Ibsen.One of the most moving essays is the final piece, “A Murderess’s Tale,” in which we are introduced to a teenager who has murdered her lesbian lover. Dalrymple takes us through her life, in which she was raped over a period of years (as early as the age of 8) by her brother. Her mother has been impregnated by a succession of (sometimes overtly criminal) lovers who have taken no responsibility whatsoever for the support of their offspring. These individuals live in Council housing, receive government handouts which disincent them from working. Their lives are filled with alcoholism and drug addiction as they live in their own self-created soap operas of violence, recrimination, and inactivity. When the young murderess is incarcerated she finally experiences stability. She enters a world in which there are boundaries, a world in which actions have consequences (some of them positive), a world which is governed by laws and rules rather than by whim. Her murder, Dalrymple concludes, “took place in a social universe that liberals have wrought, and whose realities they are too guilty or cowardly to acknowledge. It is a universe that has no place for children or childhood in it. Believing that man is the product of his environment, they have nevertheless set about creating an environment from which it is truly difficult to escape, by closing off all the avenues and bolt-holes as far as possible. They have destroyed the family and any notion of progress or improvement. They have made a world in which the only freedom is self-indulgence, a world from which—most terrible of all—prison can sometimes be a liberation.”Hence the book’s subtitle: “The Politics and Culture of Decline.” All of Dalrymple’s books are worth reading. This is one of the more powerful of them.

I have read various essays by this insightful psychiatrist and found this book very interesting as it help the reader understand how his opinions were formed. For one of his best essays, search on "The Frivolity of Evil."

Theodore Dalrymple continues with his now familiar, but more relevant than ever, warning that modern society - England in particular - is rotting from the bottom up.This doesn't sound very "nice," but Dalrymple, who worked as a psychologist for the NHS in a very rough neighborhood, has genuine compassion for those "at the bottom," and believes that, with the appropriate encouragement and support (cultural, psychological, and financial), they could improve their situation.However, the dominant culture, fueled by bad ideas from the intelligentsia, keeps them down inadvertently by encouraging a sense of victimization while discouraging (and openly mocking) the self-help attitudes that are vital to motivating them to begin moving out of their pathetic circumstances.Every generalization is supported by an example, usually personal. The writing style is "English" - erudite, elegant.His descriptions of the attitudes that his clients bring in, and the effect of those attitudes in preventing them from taking the steps they need to take to begin moving into a better situation, are eye-opening, challenging the prevailing wisdom that contemporary poverty is caused by circumstances external to the decision-making process of the poor and amenable only to external solutions.It is not just the idea, which is interesting and relevant enough, it is the way the idea is presented that makes this book and all of Dalrymple's work special. His prose is a pleasure to read and he has a talent for bringing home his points with extraordinary elegance that is efficient, but not too efficient. In other words, "English" only better.It is impossible not to be affected by this book even if you disagree with it. If nothing else, it is a bracing tonic for those who think "conservative" means bible-thumping know-nothing (He is not religious, but shows characteristic respect for those who are comforted by it) No one cares more about these people than he does, and his distress at their plight is poignant.

I enjoyed reading this a great deal. It is well-written and thought-provoking. You may have to be interested in literary figures such as Dr. Johnson and Anthony Burgess to enjoy the earlier parts, but I am interested in them. Dalrymple's views on terrorism and multiculturalism are penetrating. He writes about Britain, but there is plenty for Americans to reflect on. His writing style makes even Tony Blair (towards whom I admit feel less interest) worth reading about. I enjoyed his reflections on prisons and asylums. What a pleasure to read!

"Johnson via a existência humana como inseparável da insatisfação. É da natureza humana sofrer com desejos simultâneos incompatíveis - por exemplo, querer segurança e excitação. Quando tem-se um, deseja-se o outro, o que torna o contentamento raramente puro e jamais duradouro."Damrimple é um comentarista político que usa muito a língua dos outros, e é exatamente esse tipo de conteúdo valoriza esta obra. Não que seja um livro ruim, pelo contrário. Contudo, a maior parte dele se preocupa de pormenores da política inglesa, o que é de pouco interesse - ainda que seja possível traçar analogias e comparações com a realidade do Brasil - para o leitor brasileiro que não vive nesta realidade. Deixe-me exemplificar.Durante um texto sobre questões prisionais britânicas ele nos recorda que "uma definição de decadência é quando há um foco no imaginário gratificante ao invés de no desconcertante real". Já em uma crítica muito dura ao novo ateísmo nos lembra que "o contentamento mora não nas coisas que se têm, mas na mente que as possui". É disso que estou falando.Estes pequenos detalhes inseridos na argumentação (advindos da erudição do autor) aliviam o tom por vezes áspero e tornam a leitura até mesmo edificante - o que é inusitado para um livro predominantemente sobre política.Boa obra de Dalrymple.

Describes the effects of the "I'm all right Jack" post WW2 welfare state in the UK. Insightful but depressing observations of the Not in Education, Employment or Training population. Dalrymple's observations and exposure of the political and bureaucartic chicanary are heart wrenching and emotive. No wonder Populism is on the rise. Integtrity and values are in scare supply. Bad things happen when good people do nothing! Perhaps these are the cycles of societal evolution.

A few quite good chapters but some a bit weaker. Expected a little more from the author.

Decline? Th. Dalrymple gibt dafür sehr viele Beispiele, die aus seiner Erfahrung als Arzt, scharfem Beobachten seiner Erlebnisse und kultiviertem Menschsein herrühren. Diese stimmigen und zutreffenden Beispiele erzählt er mit teilweise sarkastischem Humor, als würde er sie zwischen den Zähnen hervorpressen, teilweise empört er sich sehr deutlich. Er beurteilt Ereignisse, die oft gleichgültig entgegengenommen werden und ordnet sie zu, sagt aus, dass der Verlust von Werten, die Abnahme von Kultur eben oft Politik und Kultur s i n d.Der Titel sagt bereits, was der Autor und mit ihm der Leser empfindet: tiefen Schmerz über das Durchlöchern und Dahinschwinden von Kultur (im Zusammenleben, in der Erziehung, bei Gesprächen und allgemein im sogenannten kulturellen Leben) oder wie es bei T.S. Eliot heißt, aus dessen "Hollow Men" von 1925 der Titel abgeleitet ist: "This is the way the world ends not with a bang but a whimper".Absolut lesenswert, oder um es mit einem modernen Slogan zu sagen: "Pflichtlektüre"!

This is an excellent read with the author expressing his views on many topics in an interesting and very candid manner. It's the first book that I have read by this author but it won't be the last. i would certainly recommend this book to anyone wanting a good read that will also make you think.