The George Grant Reader.

George Parkin Grant (Toronto, (November 13, 1918 - Halifax, Nova Scotia, September 27, 1988) was a Canadian philosopher, teacher and political commentator, whose popular appeal peaked in the late 1960s and 1970s. He is best known for his nationalism, comments on technology, Christian faith, and his conservative views regarding abortion; although, academically, his writings express a rich and deep mediation on the great books, and confrontation with the great thinkers of Western Civilization. His influences include the "ancients" such as Plato, Aristotle, and Augustine of Hippo, as well as Friedrich Nietzsche, Martin Heidegger, Leo Strauss, Simone Weil, and Jacques Ellul. Image File history File links GeorgeGrantReader. ... Image File history File links GeorgeGrantReader. ... Template:Hide = Motto: Template:Unhide = Diversity Our Strength City of Toronto, Ontario, Canadas Location. ... November 13 is the 317th day of the year (318th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 48 days remaining. ... 1918 (MCMXVIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar (see link for calendar) or a common year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. ... Please read first: This article is about the Nova Scotia community. ... September 27 is the 270th day of the year (271st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 95 days remaining. ... 1988 (MCMLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on a Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The 1960s decade refers to the years from 1960 to 1969, inclusive. ... The 1970s decade refers to the years from 1970 to 1979, inclusive. ... // Nationalism is an ideology which holds that the nation, ethnicity or national identity is a fundamental unit of human social life, and makes certain political claims based upon that belief; above all, the claim that the nation is the only legitimate basis for the state, and that each nation is... By the mid 20th century humans had achieved a level of technological mastery sufficient to leave the surface of the planet for the first time and explore space. ... As a noun, Christian is an appellation and moniker deriving from the appellation Christ, which many people associate exclusively with Jesus of Nazareth. ... For alternative meanings for The West in the United States, see the U.S. West and American West. ... Plato Plato (Greek: Πλάτων Plátōn) (ca. ... Aristotle, marble copy of bronze by Lysippos. ... St. ... Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche (IPA:) (October 15, 1844 – August 25, 1900) was a German philosopher, whose critiques of contemporary culture, religion, and philosophy centered around a basic question regarding the foundation of values and morality. ... Martin Heidegger (September 26, 1889 – May 26, 1976) was a German philosopher. ... Leo Strauss (September 20, 1899 – October 18, 1973), was a Jewish German-American political philosopher and Intellectual Historian. ... Simone Weil (February 3, 1909–August 24, 1943) was a French philosopher and mystic. ... Jacques Ellul Jacques Ellul (January 6, 1912–May 19, 1994) was a French philosopher, sociologist, theologian, and Christian anarchist. ...

Family legacy

Grant comes from a distinguished Canadian family of scholars and educators. His father was the principal of Upper Canada College, and his paternal grandfather George Monro Grant was the dynamic principal of Queen's University. His maternal grandfather was Sir George Parkin, also a principal at Upper Canada College, whose daughter Alice married Vincent Massey, the Canadian diplomat and first Canadian-born Governor General of Canada. Drawing of former UCC campus at King and Simcoe Streets in downtown Toronto Upper Canada College (UCC) is an all-male elementary and secondary school in Toronto, Ontario, the oldest independent school in the province, and the third oldest school in Canada. ... George Monro Grant (December 22, 1835 – May 10, 1902), principal of Queens College, Kingston, Ontario, was born in Albion Mines (Stellarton), Pictou County Nova Scotia in 1835. ... Drawing of former UCC campus at King and Simcoe Streets in downtown Toronto Upper Canada College (UCC) is an all-male elementary and secondary school in Toronto, Ontario, the oldest independent school in the province, and the third oldest school in Canada. ... The Right Honourable Charles Vincent Massey, CC PC (February 20, 1887 - December 30, 1967) was the eighteenth Governor General of Canada and the first who was born in Canada. ... The Governor General of Canada (French: Gouverneur général or Gouverneure générale) is the representative of the Canadian monarch. ...

Education and teaching

Grant was educated at Upper Canada College, Queen's and later attended Oxford on a Rhodes Scholarship. His D. Phil was in theology but he later taught in departments of philosophy (Dalhousie), religion (McMaster), and political science (Dalhousie). Drawing of former UCC campus at King and Simcoe Streets in downtown Toronto Upper Canada College (UCC) is an all-male elementary and secondary school in Toronto, Ontario, the oldest independent school in the province, and the third oldest school in Canada. ... Queens University, or simply Queens, is a coeducational, nonsectarian university located in Kingston, Ontario, Canada, on the edge of Lake Ontario. ... The University of Oxford, located in the city of Oxford in England, is the oldest university in the English-speaking world. ... Rhodes House in Oxford The Rhodes Scholarships were created by Englishman Cecil John Rhodes and have been awarded to applicants annually since 1902 by the Oxford-based Rhodes Trust on the basis of academic qualities, as well as those of character. ... Dalhousie University is a university located in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. ... McMaster University is a medium-sized research-intensive university located in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, with an enrollment of 16,771 full-time and 3,599 part-time students (as of 2004). ... Dalhousie University is a university located in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. ...

Politics and philosophy

In 1965, he published Lament for a Nation which regretted what he claimed was Canada's inevitable absorption by the United States. Grant articulated a political philosophy which was becoming known as Red Toryism which promoted the collectivist and communitarian aspects of the conservative tradition as exemplified by Sir John A. Macdonald as opposed to the libertarian and individualist traditions of liberalism. And in point of fact, Grant's views, and Red Toryism itself, is essentially nothing more than Classical Canadian conservatism. 1965 (MCMLXV) was a common year starting on Friday (link goes to calendar). ... Red Tory is an appellation given to a political tradition in Canadas conservative political parties. ... The Right Honourable Sir John Alexander Macdonald, KCMG, GCB, QC, PC, DCL, LL.D (January 11, 1815 – June 6, 1891) was the first Prime Minister of Canada from July 1, 1867 – November 5, 1873 and October 17, 1878 – June 6, 1891. ... See also Libertarianism and Libertarian Party Libertarian,is a term for person who has made a conscious and principled commitment, evidenced by a statement or Pledge, to forswear violating others rights and usually living in voluntary communities: thus in law no longer subject to government supervision. ... This article discusses liberalism as a major political ideology as it developed and stands currently. ...

The subjects of his books, essays, public lectures and radio addresses (frequently on CBC Radio in Canada) quite frequently combined philosophy, religion, and political thought. Grant strongly critiqued what he believed were the worst facets of modernity, namely unbridled technological advancement and a loss of moral foundations to guide humanity. What he proposed in place of the modern spirit was a synthesis of Christian and Platonic thought which embodied contemplation of the 'good.' Modernity is a term used to describe the condition of being Modern. Since the term Modern is used to describe a wide range of periods, modernity must be taken in context. ... As a noun, Christian is an appellation and moniker deriving from the appellation Christ, which many people associate exclusively with Jesus of Nazareth. ... Plato Plato (Greek: Πλάτων Plátōn) (ca. ...

An extraordinary public communicator, his first book, Philosophy in the Mass Age (1959), began as a series of CBC lectures. In it he posed the question of how human beings could reconcile moral freedom with acceptance of the view that an order existed in the universe beyond space and time. In 1965, furious that the Liberal government had accepted nuclear weapons, he published Lament for a Nation. This short work created a sensation with its argument that Canada was destined to disappear into a universal and homogeneous state whose centre was the United States. Technology and Empire (1969), a collection of essays edited by poet and friend Dennis Lee, deepened his critique of technological modernity and Time as History, his 1969 Massey Lectures, explained the worsening predicament of the West through an examination of the thought of Friedrich Nietzsche. Grant's works of the 1960s had a strong influence on the nationalist movement of the 1970s, though many of the New Left were uncomfortable with Grant's conservatism, his conventional Anglican Tory beliefs and Christian-Platonist perspective. Canadian Broadcasting Corporation Cipher-block chaining ... The Massey Lectures are a prestigious annual event in Canada, in which a noted Canadian or international scholar gives a week-long series of lectures on a political, cultural or philosophical topic. ... High Church is a term that may now be used in speaking of viewpoints within a number of denominations of Protestant Christianity in general, but it is one which has traditionally been employed in Churches associated with the Anglican tradition in particular. ... Neoplatonism (also Neo-Platonism) was a school of philosophy that took shape in the 3rd century A.D. Though based on the teachings of Plato and the Platonists, it interpreted Plato in many new ways, so that Neoplatonism was quite different from what Plato had written, though many Neoplatonists would...

Grant's last work was Technology and Justice (1986), which he prepared together with his wife. Concluding from his three decades-long meditation on French philosopher Simone Weil's works, he declared that there were fundamental moral and spiritual flaws in Western civilization, consigning it to a fate of inevitable collapse. Nevertheless, Grant stated he believed a better civilization could eventually replace it. Simone Weil (February 3, 1909–August 24, 1943) was a French philosopher and mystic. ...

At the time of his death in 1988, Grant was seen as the exemplar Red Tory in Canada; and while he eventually came to transcend the temporal world of politics, his toryism has continued to define the framework for a gentle and thoughtful Nationalism in Canada.

List of works

• The Empire, Yes or No? Ryerson Press, (1945).
• Philosophy in the Mass Age. CBC, (1959)
• Lament for a Nation : the Defeat of Canadian Nationalism. McClelland & Stewart, (1965).
• Time as History. CBC, (1969).
• Technology and Empire : Perspectives on North America. Anansi, (1969)
• English-speaking Justice. Mount Allison University, (1974).
• Grant, G.P. (1976). The computer does not impose on us the ways it should be used. In W. Christian & S. Grant (Eds.), The George Grant reader. Toronto, Canada: University of Toronto Press.
• Technology and Justice. Anansi, (1986).
• George Grant : selected letters edited, with an introduction by William Christian. University of Toronto Press, (1996).
• The George Grant Reader. William Christian and Sheila Grant (editors). University of Toronto Press, (1998)
• Collected works of George Grant. Arthur Davis (editor). University of Toronto Press, (2000)

Works as subject

• George Grant in Process: Essays and Coversations. Larry Schmidt (editor). House of Anansi Press, (1978).
• Modernity and Responsibility : essays for George Grant. Eugene Combs, (editor). University of Toronto Press, (1983).
• George Grant: A Biography. William Christian, University of Toronto Press, 1994.
• George Grant in Conversation. David Cayley. Anansi, (1995).
• Two theological languages by George Grant and Other essays in honour of his work. Wayne Whillier, (editor) E. Mellen Press (1990).

Articles on subject

• Andrew, E. (1988). George Grant on technological imperatives. In R. Beiner, R. Day, & J. Masciulli (Eds.), Democratic theory and technological society. Armonk, NY: Sharpe.
• Angus, I. (1987). George Grant’s Platonic rejoinder to Heidegger. Lewiston, NY: Edward Mellon.
• Athanasiadis, H. (2001). George Grant and the theology of the Cross. Toronto, Canada: University of Toronto Press.
• Badertscher, J. (1978). George P. Grant and Jacques Ellul on freedom in technological society. In L. Schmidt (Ed.), George Grant in process: Essays and conversations. Toronto, Canada: Anansi.
• Barros, J. (1986). No sense of evil: Espionage, the case of Herbert Norman. Toronto, Canada: Deneau.
• Cayley, D. (1995). George Grant in conversation. Toronto, Canada: Anansi.
• Christian, W. (1993). George Grant: A biography. Toronto, Canada: University of Toronto Press.
• Davis, A. (Ed.). (1996). George Grant and the subversion of modernity. Toronto, Canada: University of Toronto Press.
• Ellul, J. (1965). The technological society (John Wilkerson, Trans.). New York: Vintage.
• Flinn, F. (1981). George Grant’s critique of technological liberalism. Doctoral thesis, St. Michael’s College, University of Toronto.
• Horowitz, G. (1990). Commentary. In P. C. Emberley (Ed.), By loving our own: George Grant and the legacy of Lament for a nation. Ottawa, Canada: Carleton University Press.
• Kroker, A. (1984). Technology and the Canadian mind. Montreal, Canada: New World Perspectives.
• Lee, D. (1990). Grant’s impasse. In P. C. Emberley (Ed.), By loving our own: George Grant and the legacy of "Lament for a Nation." Ottawa, Canada: Carleton University Press.
• Mathie, W. (1978). The technological regime: George Grant’s analysis of modernity. In L. Schmidt (Ed.), George Grant in process: Essays and conversations. Toronto, Canada: Anansi.
• McHughen, A. (2000). Pandora’s picnic basket: The potential and hazard of genetically modified foods. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
• Rigelhof, T. L. (2001). George Grant: Redefining Canada. Montreal, Canada: XYZ Publishers.
• Siebert, J. W. H. (1988). George Grant’s troubled appropriation of Martin Heidegger on the question concerning technology. Master’s thesis, St. Michael’s College, University of Toronto.
• Umar, Y. K. (Ed.). (1991). George Grant and the future of Canada. Calgary, Canada: University of Calgary Press.

References

• Christian, William (2005). "Grant, George Parkin". Retrieved Oct. 31, 2005.

External Links

• A 40th anniversary retrospective of the Lament