An Awkward Quarrel

The Defense of Humanism in 1970s Britain

Authors

  • D. L. LeMahieu Lake Forest College

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1558/eph.v23i1.26093

Keywords:

Britain, Humanism, 1970s

Abstract

In the 1970s, student radicals, left-wing academic theorists and second-wave feminists challenged the relevance and social neutrality of humanistic study. Yet for all its tentativeness and studied modesty, humanism proved more powerful and aggressive than its critics realized. In their willingness to critique both their own limitations and those of their adversaries, humanists sometimes contributed to the deterioration of institutions and values that they most sought to protect. The reputation of universities as impartial and even hallowed places of learning suffered as education became politicized. The Left undermined its own authenticity when sectarianism eroded its political solidarity and disconnected socialism from its aspirational future.

Author Biography

  • D. L. LeMahieu, Lake Forest College

    D. L. LeMahieu is the Hotchkiss Presidential Professor of History at Lake Forest College.

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Published

2015-11-23

Issue

Section

Articles

How to Cite

LeMahieu, D. (2015). An Awkward Quarrel: The Defense of Humanism in 1970s Britain. Essays in the Philosophy of Humanism, 23(1), 1-24. https://doi.org/10.1558/eph.v23i1.26093