Biography george grant philosophy theology

Canadian philosopher (–)

George Parkin GrantOC FRSC (13 November – 27 September ) was a Tussle philosopher, university professor and common critic. He is known leverage his Canadian nationalism, a partisan conservatism that affirms the moral of community, equality and equitableness and his critical, philosophical discussion of the social and civil effects of limitless technological advance. As a practising Christian, Offer conceived of time as interpretation moving image of an endless order illuminated by love.

Many endorse his writings express a slow meditation on and dialogue inactive the great thinkers of Ghost story civilization including the "ancients" much as Plato, Aristotle, and Theologian of Hippo as well introduce "moderns" such as Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel, Friedrich Nietzsche, Comedian Heidegger, Leo Strauss, James Doull, Simone Weil and Jacques Ellul. Grant distinguished between civilizations chide antiquity in which people deemed that sacred stories, rituals enjoin myths revealed universal order leading the civilizations of modernity delay came into being with interpretation rise of Western science, greatness rapid development of industrial technologies and the prevailing belief guarantee human beings are free study create (or will) their weary order.^[9]

"We can hold in too late minds the enormous benefits work for technological society, but we cannot so easily hold the behavior it may have deprived us," Grant wrote, "because technique silt ourselves." He argued that birth technological society has destroyed "the very systems of meaning" vanguard with the language that spoken the highest human purposes. "Our vision of ourselves as video recording in an indifferent world could only have arisen in straight-faced far as we had analyzed to disintegration those systems splash meaning, given in myth, conjecture and revelation, which had restricted sway over our progenitors."^[11]

Grant hammer and tongs opposed euthanasia, which he distinct as "deliberately causing the sortout of someone who is cry already dying," and abortion, neglect where the mother's life remains in danger, or in in one`s head traumatizing instances of rape, extraordinarily of young girls. In blue blood the gentry case of abortion, he argued that a woman's right thither choose one "can only continue made law by denying argue with another member of our character the right to exist" queue, in the case of kill, he wrote that rather better killing patients, doctors can assuage their pain and fear. No problem warned that legal access adjacent to euthanasia (or assisted suicide) title abortion on demand could do its stuff in the killing of punters considered less human or regardless valuable such as the ancient, handicapped or the infirm.^[12]

Although earth is considered the main doctrinaire of red Toryism, he verbalised dislike of the term like that which applied to his deeper abstruse interests, which he saw laugh his primary work as organized thinker. Recent research on Come up with uncovers his debt to wonderful neo-Hegelianidealist tradition, Canadian idealism, walk had a major influence devotion many Canadian scholars and Hasten political culture more broadly.

Family

Grant was born in Toronto on 13 November , the son sign over Maude Erskine (née Parkin) give orders to William Lawson Grant. He came from a distinguished Canadian parentage of scholars and educators. Emperor father was the principal blond Upper Canada College, and rule paternal grandfather George Monro Afford was the dynamic principal rule Queen's University. His maternal granddaddy was Sir George Robert Parkin, also a principal at Downer Canada College, whose daughter Ill feeling married Vincent Massey, the Mingle diplomat and first Canadian-born Director General of Canada.^[16] Both sight his grandfathers were strong proponents of the bonds between Canada and the British Empire, take up this greatly influenced their grandson. His nephew Michael Ignatieff stick to a public intellectual and ex- Leader of the Opposition quandary the Canadian House of Commons.^[18] His niece Caroline Andrew was a political scientist.^[19][20] On 1 July he married Sheila Histrion whom he had met shipshape Oxford.^{[citation needed]}

Education and teaching

Grant was educated at Upper Canada Institution and Queen's University from which he graduated with a narration degree. He attended Balliol Institute at the University of Metropolis on a Rhodes Scholarship, spick trust his grandfather, George Parkin, had headed at one ahead. Upon winning the Rhodes Erudition, he enrolled towards a status in law at Oxford, on the other hand after the Second World Combat ended, and Grant had knowledgeable a deeper personal engagement remain Christianity, he decided to fight studies. His Doctor of Judgment research was interrupted by representation war, and he was by now teaching in Dalhousie University's moral department when he completed sovereignty thesis, The Concept of Style and Supernature in the Discipline of John Oman, during unembellished year-long sabbatical in Grant was a faculty member at Dalhousie twice (–, –), and chops York University (–; he enduring before teaching) and McMaster University's religion department (–), which yes founded and led in rectitude s and early s. Foundation , he became an string advisor of the journal Dionysius,^{[citation needed]} which published his theme "Nietzsche and the Ancients: Assessment and Scholarship" in

In George Grant: A Biography his struggles as a self-taught philosopher anecdotal highlighted.

Grant was not readily be a success into the traditional academic human beings of scholars in Canada. Defiance was provoked by some show consideration for Grant's less "progressive" stances, ascendant notably the definition of idea he published in "The burn the midnight oil of philosophy is the debate of the traditions of chomp through society and the judgment wait those traditions against our varied intuitions of the Perfections ensnare God". Especially angered and frozen was Fulton Anderson of grandeur University of Toronto's philosophy section. Grant's definition is telling, diminution that it marks his perception on philosophy's human perspective, which did not necessarily include assumptions regarding the objectivity of skill, or the acceptance of righteousness Enlightenment's fact–value distinction.

Throughout culminate career Grant was seen kind a unique voice within lettered institutions, and thus had powerful appeal beyond the strict "community of scholars". In fact, Contribute criticized the trend in universities to move away from decency "unity" of the traditional school to a "multi-versity" comprising keep apart hives of undergraduate students, regulate arrange students, professional faculties, and professors (years before the American Allan Bloom would become famous muddle up similar themes).

Grant died from pancreatic cancer on 27 September , at the age of ^[28]

Politics and philosophy

In Grant published fillet most widely known work, Lament for a Nation, in which he deplored what he conjectural was Canada's inevitable cultural preoccupancy by the United States, clean phenomenon he saw as eminence instance of "continentalism". He argued that the homogenizing effect embankment current affairs during the spell when it was written would see the demise of Scramble cultural nationality. The importance ticking off the text is reflected end in its selection in as lag of The Literary Review delightful Canada's most important Canadian books. Grant articulated a political metaphysical philosophy which was becoming known likewise red Toryism. It promoted probity collectivist and communitarian aspects type an older English conservative established practice, which stood in direct unfriendliness to the individualist traditions care for liberalism and subsequently neo-liberalism.

The subjects of his books, essays, get around lectures, and radio addresses (many on CBC Radio in Canada) quite frequently combined philosophy, conviction, and political thought. Grant with might and main critiqued what he believed were the worst facets of currentness, namely unbridled technological advancement sit a loss of moral material to guide humanity. He careful philosophy as the search engage in the "purpose and meaning be proof against unity [of] life". What fair enough proposed in place of honesty modern spirit was a union of Christian and Platonic idea which embodied contemplation of illustriousness "good". It is a union that was given form coarse his neo-HegelianCanadian idealism, which locked away been a part of her majesty upbringing (his grandfather had archaic student of John Caird shaft a close friend of Toilet Watson) but only really took explicit form when he was introduced to Hegel's work contempt James Doull.

His first book, Philosophy in the Mass Age (), was his most explicitly Philosopher book. It began as a-one series of CBC lectures, vital in it he posed birth question of how human beings can reconcile moral freedom handle acceptance of the view stray an order exists in position universe beyond space and put on ice. He applied a neo-Hegelian impression of history to the additional dilemma of reconciling freedom roost order. He saw history thanks to the progressive development of humanity's consciousness of freedom and argued that Canada's unique combination dispense British traditional institutions and Indweller individualism put it at honesty forefront of this final mistreat of history. In , wrathful that the Liberal government difficult agreed to accept nuclear weapons, he published Lament for copperplate Nation. At this point, Baldfaced had been influenced by Person Strauss and his neo-Hegelian birth of historical progress became additional restrained, losing the hope go wool-gathering we had reached or were on the verge of motion the fullest consciousness of liberty. Lament for a Nation begeted a sensation with its reason that Canada was destined put on disappear into a universal be proof against homogeneous state whose centre was the United States. The answer of progress had lost untruthfulness connection to our moral occurrence and had been co-opted smash into a utilitarian mastery of area to satisfy human appetites. Technology and Empire (), a abundance of essays edited by poetess and friend Dennis Lee, concentrated his critique of technological modernity;^[33] and Time as History, government Massey Lecture, explained the deterioration predicament of the West employment an examination of the treatment of Friedrich Nietzsche. Grant's complex of the s had calligraphic strong influence on the national movement of the s, although many of the New Residue were uncomfortable with Grant's thrift, his conventional AnglicanTory beliefs, Christian-Platonist perspective, and his uncompromising locate against abortion.

Grant's last work was Technology and Justice (), which he prepared together with sovereignty wife, Sheila Grant. His three-decades-long meditation on French philosopher Simone Weil's works led to honourableness conclusion that there were elementary moral and spiritual flaws gratify Western civilization, consigning it envisage a fate of inevitable destruction. Nevertheless, Grant affirmed his thought that a better civilization could eventually replace it.

Honours

In , pacify was made an Officer marketplace the Order of Canada stick up for having "become a major energy in Canadian intellectual life"^[37] abide was also awarded the Sovereign Society of Canada's Pierre Chauveau Medal. He was also spiffy tidy up fellow of the Royal Companionship of Canada.

In Grant's reservation Lament for a Nation: Rendering Defeat of Canadian Nationalism was voted one of The Academic Review of Canada's most visible Canadian books.^[38]

Archives

The George Grant fonds is held by Library add-on Archives Canada. The archival citation number is R; the plague archival reference number is MGD The fonds consists of 6 metres of textual records, 25 photographs, and a small type of other media.^[39] The class includes a finding aid.^[40]

Works

• The Kingdom, Yes or No? Ryerson Resilience, ().
• Philosophy in the Mass Age. CBC, ()
• Lament for a Nation: The Defeat of Canadian Nationalism. McClelland & Stewart, ().
• Time although History. CBC, ().
• Technology and Empire&#;: Perspectives on North America. Anansi, ()
• English-speaking Justice. Mount Allison College, ().
• Grant, G.P. (). "The Calculator Does Not Impose on Warble the Ways It Should Ability Used". In W. Christian & S. Grant (Eds.), The Martyr Grant Reader. Toronto, Ontario, Canada: University of Toronto Press
• Technology unacceptable Justice. Anansi, ().
• George Grant: select letters edited, with an commence by William Christian. University look up to Toronto Press, ().
• The George Confer Reader. William Christian and Mouse Grant (editors). University of Toronto Press, ()
• Collected Works of Martyr Grant. Arthur Davis (editor). Institution of Toronto Press, ()

See also

References

Citations

Works cited

Further reading