Heresies: Against Progress And Other Illusions

Amongst my papers I have a magazine celebrating the coming-of-age of The Prince of Wales, wherein, Leon Petrulengro, the famed astrologer, predicts the course of the life of His Royal Highness: Petrulengro is most unlucky as he gets every thing wrong; even chance would have predicted some accuracy - but nothing. Reading Heresies reminded me of Petrulengro, for although Gray is a Philosopher rather than an Astrologer, he also seems (and this after only a decade) to be entirely wrong in his prophecies for the future of The Middle East (which is what the book, comprising essays reprinted from the New Statesman, is largely about).I remember it well: Some two million of us on a chilly overcast Saturday in February decended - at our own expense - on London and marched; we passed the gates of 10 Downing Street - firmly closed and uninviting - and on to Hyde Park where Galloway and some pop-musician in the far distance performed. I could see little and heard less. I wended my way back to Charing Cross wondering rather what the point of it all had been, particularily as The Prime Minister had that day gone to Glasgow but leaving a message of insult for the marchers. Clearly we are democratic (although even Blair did not enjoy the popularity that Saddam had in Iraq) but democracy does not extend to Plebs either properly comprehending or constructing HMG's Foreign Policy.I like Gray's Pessimism, but, on balance, Optimists seem to have the better of it: I am not sure how things are, now, in Iraq, but it has certainly passed out of the news; Afghanistan is where it is at; Syria may fall, but contrary to Gray's prediction, Saudi Arabia did not fall, and neither did Tony Blair. Gray however entirely fails to predict, The Arab Spring and fails to see that Al Queda far from being a powerful force is largely spectral. Making prophecy clearly makes one a hostage to fortune. Of course, given time, some of his predictions may, in one form or another, materialise, but I would not be impressed: I have a friend who predicted the crash of 2008 - he had been predicting it for almost twenty years as an event to happen soon.As heresies go, Gray, is on fairly safe grounds; a lack of belief in the future success of the enlightenment does not result in banishment from Academia or Imprisonment for thought crimes. The horrors of Enlightenment delusions are however much closer to home and a few hours on the Net should bring Gray up to speed - it will be, I fear a steep learning curve.

i found Grays writing to be entertaining and highly accessible, considering it is dealing with some complex issues. He is clearly knowledgeable in his subject areas and his assumption that the reader is as intelligent and well read as himself is pleasant, if probably wrong on both counts. It would be foolish to quibble with his factual information or with much of the implications it has for psychology or theology. it is on his pronouncements of future effects that things become a bit shaky. Not that i would have believed he could be wrong had i read this book at its time of publication, and if i had read the articles as they were printed then i would no doubt have become a total Gray bore. However, Tony Blair's government didn't collapse, the americans seem to be getting away with it in Iraq, and the tory revival was four years late. It is therefore refreshing to read a well argued and intelligent book that is at times wrong in its predictions. It stops you from getting too carried away with his point of view and keeping a healthy dose of scepticism about his views on things yet to pass.

Great book in very good conditon, A recommended read

Our book group mostly rated this highly

More genius from the Master...

I recently re-read this collection of essays to see how well they stood the test of time and the answer is: very well indeed. All the essays cover familiar Gray territory: political progress is temporary or illusory and new technologies will be used for both fair ends and foul, particularly in a continuing destructive wave of humanity's exploitation of the planet's environment; grandiose attempts to remake the world for the better will founder and violent conflict will not end; and the hubristic nature of Tony Blair's political projects (after 2000). Written in the period 2000-2003, the author was prescient, particularly in the form that the Middle East conflict would take as the Iraq conflict played out and the Arab Spring began and what fthe likely democratic forms in the Middle East would take as despotical regimes were deposed. It was also predictive of the fate of Tony Blair and his political projects, correctly noting that he had no support amongst his party at constituency level: the recent changes at the head of the Labour party being reflective of this truth.The author is an excellent writer, always clear and lucid and accessible to anyone interested in the most pressing political concerns and the essays are almost all still relevant now. It is relatively un-partisan and I think that most readers could engage with his arguments.

A collection of essays by the accomplished and sceptic Gray whose erudition is worn lightly and still leaves the reader feeling somewhat inadequate. Here he casts his deep and penetrative eye over such subjects as the war on terror, the illusions of progress and politics. For Gray Enlightenment succeeded in replacing one religion with another, where pie in the sky is exchanged for a pie that will be baked on earth, once all the ingredients have been collected, the utensils made and appliances engineered. Gray's beef isn't with science but with the cult of science. This cult sees the evolved primate progress inch by inch towards a paradise on the horizon. The savagely satirical Torture: A Modest Proposal is a highlight where he takes apart Dershowitz's position on torture with a Swiftian elegance. Gray is by turns provocative, disturbing, sensible and very funny but at all times he is cool and measured. Shrillness is something he is not acquainted with. This is a collection definitely worth investigating.