An interim review

I have only "read" about a third of the book, but felt I needed to add to the comments available. The book addresses the contributions of significant individuals to conservative thought. It attempts to put their thoughts in the context of the times and lives of those people. I would not consider the book a collection of biographies. I believe that one of the purposes of the book is to create an interest in the reader that will lead him to go to the writings of the people mentioned. In my case it succeeded. A couple of other comments: Mr. Kirk tends not to define the terms that he uses, so the reader is left to find the definitions himself, or find the definition well after the term is first used. I also sometimes found the book a little hard to follow as I was listening, and had to refer to a text copy. I would definitely recommend the book, especially to those looking for the basis of conservative thought.

20 persone l'hanno trovata utile

Worth the time and effort

This book should be read/listened to - not for correctness - and not for conclusions - but because it broadens the background of almost every reader by presenting competing viewpoints to those propagated by academia and the popular media.

17 persone l'hanno trovata utile

Christian view of property rights

My favorite aspects of "The Conservative Mind" were the author's summaries of the beliefs of Burke and Macaulay. Indeed it is far easier to understand Burke and Macaulay by reading "The Conservative Mind" than it is to read the works of those authors directly.

I also like when Kirk points out repeatedly a fact that most people seem to hide themselves from today: that most people don't know or understand anything about government and therefore universal suffrage democracy backfires.

Kirk loses me with his insistence that protection of property rights cannot come about from people following the path of enlightened self-interest. Instead, Kirk insists that religious morality is the only way to convince people to protect property rights.

But, besides that one issue, the book is excellent and well worth reading.

John Christmas, author of "Democracy Society"

11 persone l'hanno trovata utile

for true believers only

I was hoping for an introduction to Conservatism, and its under pinning philosophies. All that this book provides is an over wordy, and boring uncritical recitation of the lives of the author's heroes.

7 persone l'hanno trovata utile

A remarkable must-read with some glaring flaws

Things started off pretty well. Near the end, this book started to get really repetitive--the only thing that alerts you to the fact that you're not listening to an earlier part of the book is a change in names.

The Conservative Mind eloquently traces the history and rout of philosophical conservatism. One can't help but wish that we had more of this and far less of the awful populist nationalism we see today. But some of Kirk's ideas are probably best left behind.

He seems to develop an odd insistence on dualism later--this doesn't make sense in orthodox Christian belief or in science. That's a minor issue. Kirk also hates cars because they enable people to move more than before. My biggest gripe, which nearly got me to stop listening altogether, was Kirk's admiration for the old ways of the old South. This he does without mentioning slavery at all. I don't care how conservative you are, there's no legitimate worldview that seeks the preservation of slavery. I say this as a conservative--and to put it in Burkean terms, Providence broke that southern yoke of oppression.

Kirk's conservatism is eloquent and powerful, but seems unnecessarily cruel and arrogant. The prose in this book is also awful. Obscure references and an apparently strong preference for words with Latin roots makes it a somewhat grating thing to listen to.

All that said, I'm better off having read this book. Its cultural importance should not be ignored, and I think a renewal of conservative values based on the permanent things would do the world much good.

4 persone l'hanno trovata utile

Excellent book; flawed reader

What did you like best about The Conservative Mind? What did you like least?

The book is excellent, stimulating and informative -- even for a thoughtful liberal. Phillip Davidson, however, is not a good reader because there is too much dynamic variation in his speaking voice -- i.e., he will utter one syllable of a word clearly and distinctly, then drop his voice for the rest of the word or sometimes even the phrase, making it very difficult to catch what he is saying. A good reader needs more consistent volume and phrasing than Davidson has. Unfortunately, his reading voice is an impediment to the enjoyment of an otherwise excellent experience.

4 persone l'hanno trovata utile

Inspiring

An inspiring work illustrating great comprehension. Narrator spoke a little too slow. Worth the Listen.

3 persone l'hanno trovata utile

Interesting topic, insufferable attitude

This book wasn’t for you, but who do you think might enjoy it more?

Religious people who already think political conservatism requires believing in god.

What could Russell Kirk have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?

Not opened with an interminable insistence that godless people can't possibly be conservatives.

What did you like about the performance? What did you dislike?

I don't remember the performance. I just remember the subject matter.

What reaction did this book spark in you? Anger, sadness, disappointment?

Frustration. If it had been hard copy, maybe I could have flipped around looking for the meat. As it was he just went on and on insulting my lack of religion, without ever getting around to politics, until I gave up on it.

Any additional comments?

Johnathan Haidt's _The Righteous Mind_ is fascinating stuff, on a related topic. As is Tamim Ansary's _Destiny Disrupted_.

2 persone l'hanno trovata utile

A review of great books

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

This book was well read and reflected the text of the book. However, it reviews rarely read books.

Has The Conservative Mind turned you off from other books in this genre?

It has not.

You didn’t love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?

The material is useful and valuable. However, it is tedious.

2 persone l'hanno trovata utile

Very good, although it was too deep to follow in-depth while working

I listen to a lot of books while I work my construction job and I thought this was excellent. It was difficult to follow while working do to the depth of material but definitely worth the read. I plan to get a hard copy to revisit and make notes.

1 persona l'ha trovata utile