Governor General's Award Winner
Tenth Anniverary Edition, with a new preface
Our society, John Ralston Saul argues in his 1995 CBC Massey Lectures, is only superficially based on the individual and democracy. Increasingly it is conformist and corporatist, a society in which legitimacy lies with specialist or interest groups and decisions are made through constant negotiations between these groups.
The paradox of our situation is that knowledge has not made us conscious. Instead, we have sought refuge in a world of illusion where language is cut off from reality. Reconnecting language to reality, clarifying what we mean by individualism and democracy, making these realities central to the citizen's life, identifying ideologies in order to control them, these are among the first elements of equilibrium which Saul proposes in these lectures.
Governor General's Award Winner
Tenth Anniverary Edition, with a new preface
Our society, John Ralston Saul argues in his 1995 CBC Massey Lectures, is only superficially based on the individual and democracy. Increasingly it is conformist and corporatist, a society in which legitimacy lies with specialist or interest groups and decisions are made through constant negotiations between these groups.
The paradox of our situation is that knowledge has not made us conscious. Instead, we have sought refuge in a world of illusion where language is cut off from reality. Reconnecting language to reality, clarifying what we mean by individualism and democracy, making these realities central to the citizen's life, identifying ideologies in order to control them, these are among the first elements of equilibrium which Saul proposes in these lectures.
| Published By | House of Anansi Press Inc — Nov 1, 1995 |
| Specifications | 224 pages | 5.06 in x 7.94 in |
| Keywords | Democracy; Sociology; Political; award winner; Massey Lectures; |
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Supporting Resources
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Excerpt |
| Written By | John Ralston Saul was elected President of International PEN in October 2009. He is author of a number of national bestsellers. He lives in Toronto. Visit John Ralston Saul's website: http://www.johnralstonsaul.com/ Follow John Ralston Saul on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/ralstonsaulnews |
| Written By |
| John Ralston Saul was elected President of International PEN in October 2009. He is author of a number of national bestsellers. He lives in Toronto. Visit John Ralston Saul's website: http://www.johnralstonsaul.com/ Follow John Ralston Saul on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/ralstonsaulnews |
Winner, Gordon Montador Award, 1996
Winner, Governor General's Award: Nonfiction, 1996