Ever since the release of Dr. Durant's last book, "Heroes of History," I have received numerous inquiries about his approach to history as philosophy.
In essence, Durant's approach to philosophy -- particularly once he embraced history as "philosophy teaching by examples" -- was to obtain a broader view of human existence and to look at the events of the past with a philosophical perspective to learn something of value in the five branches of philosophy (metaphysics, epistemology, ethics, politics, art) and all of their derivative branches such as human relationships, religion, happiness, dealing with grief and adversity and living more enlightened, authentic lives.
Durant's approach is worthy of an entire book, perhaps even a series of books, and, as such, it would not be fitting or proper for me to attempt to do it justice on this forum. However, since I have been so frequently asked what "lessons" one can derive from reading "Heroes of History," I would like to touch on a few (and there are many more) that this book has to teach:
·THE DIFFERING ROLES OF WOMEN: The Golden Age of Athens, for example, found women secluded, uneducated and neglected in art, which favored the male form. This gulf between the sexes led to rampant homosexuality as men sought elsewhere the charms that they had not permitted their women to acquire. Varying greatly from this was the role of women in Rome during the period between 133 B.C. and 31 B.C.; Italian women were considered alluring, filled with the exhilaration that accompanies freedom. Prostitution was a major industry, adultery was common, and women were able to divorce their husbands as readily as men divorced their wives. A rising number of women sought education and expression through art. Marriage became increasingly political as women avoided wedlock, wishing to be sexually desirable rather than maternally revered. In ancient Egypt, women enjoyed a higher legal status and a greater moral and social freedom than in any European state before our time.
·THE EBB AND FLOW OF MORALITY: Durant noted that one of the most regular sequences of history is that a period of moral excess is followed by a period of restraint. For example, the moral decay of Ancient Rome under emperors Nero and Commodus was followed by emperor Constantine’s adoption of Christianity; the violence and sexual license of the Italian Renaissance led to the cleansing of the church and the restoration of Christian morality; Elizabethan England gave way to the Puritan domination under Cromwell, which led to the paganism of England under Charles II; the breakdown of society during the French Revolution led to the restoration of law under Napoleon I; the romantic paganism of Byron and Shelley was followed by the propriety of Victorian England.
· THE VIABILITY OF HOMOSEXUALS IN THE MILITARY: Despite recent assertions that homosexuals are "bad" for military "morale," it is observed that throughout history homosexuals have been among the most formidable of warriors; at Leuctra in 371 B.C. a Theban army led by Epaminondas and 300 “Greek lovers” bound in homosexual attachment defeated the Spartans – the most feared army in all of ancient Greece – and thereby ended Sparta’s domination of Greece.
·CLASS WARS: We are wont to think that our labor strikes and class wars are a relatively recent phenomenon. "Heroes of History" teaches us that class wars flourished and strikes were frequent in ancient Egypt! 7th Century Athens saw an enormous disparity of fortune between the rich and the poor. The poor spoke of revolution and a redistribution of the wealth while the rich supported harsh laws in an attempt to crush the uprising. Athens, Plato says, became “two cities, one of the poor, the other of the rich, the one at war with the other.” We find this state of social imbalance recurring frequently throughout history. A similar crisis erupted in Rome in 133 B.C., resulting in a hundred years of class war; in 1522, German peasants, spurred by Martin Luther’s rebellion against the Roman Church, revolted against nobility and clergymen and demanded a distribution of the wealth among the poor.
·THE ROLE OF RELIGION AS BUTTRESS TO MORAL CODES: The birth of the Jewish nation sprung out of a Middle East that in pre-Christian times was a melting pot of peoples, hot in pride and temper, restless in their wanderings, impatient in their settlements. As was the case when Abraham led his people into Canaan, and then later with Moses and the Ten Commandments, and as we still note in modern times, the application of religious beliefs strengthens the unity, health, morality, and courage of an imperiled people. Theological terrors in some measure serve to check the pride and insolence of youth, the crimes of adults and the wars of states. In time, the Church, rather than the state, also became the source and guardian of civilization. When Constantine adopted Christianity in 312, Christian priests under the leadership of the Pope in Rome took up the administration of social order in Western Europe.
"Heroes Of History" is further filled with rich character portraits of the greater men and women from our past, relayed with a blend of wit, knowledge and simplicity. Dr. Durant emphasizes the profound significance of the poets, artists, statesmen and philosophers that peopled the landscape of human history, such as:
·THE STATESMANSHIP OF SOLON: Proved the efficacy of statesmanship in preventing social chaos when Athens found itself divided by class war in 594 B.C. He calmed the class conflict, established a new constitution and restored stability -- all without using violence.
·THE TACTICS OF HANNIBAL: The military strategy employed by this Carthaginian general against the Roman army on the battlefield at Cannae in 216 B.C. was so supreme that it set the lines of military tactics for two thousand years.
· THE REFORMATION OF MARTIN LUTHER: A monk who launched the German Reformation in 1517 when, in an attempt to stop the merchandising of religion, he denounced the sale of indulgences by the Roman Catholic Church. In an unprecedented move, Luther furthered his religious revolt by appealing to the German national spirit.
·THE INFLUENCE OF CONFUCIUS: The most influential philosopher in history, Confucius’ basic tenet held that widespread education would restore morality and social order. His doctrine would become one of the pillars of philosophy that has echoed through the corridors of time to our present age: Reform begins at home -- and is cultivated not through violence, but education.
·THE SELF-ACTUALIZATION OF LEONARDO DA VINCI: The incredible achievements in the late 1400’s and early 1500’s of this painter, sculptor, inventor, thinker and scientist serve to remind us of our potential for greatness; man’s progress from his humble beginnings should renew our faith in the possibilities of mankind.
To all those searching for answers in the aftermath of the World Trade Center and Pentagon tragedies, to those seeking more meaning from life and who want to understand our species better, "Heroes of History" offers salient insights not on how man "might" behave, or "should" behave, but on how man "has" behaved for over 6,000 years. To quote Durant:
One who knows that record is in large measure protected in advance against the delusions and disillusionments of his time. He has learned the limitations of human nature, and bears with equanimity the faults of his neighbors and the imperfections of states. He shares hopefully in the reforming enterprises of his age and people; but his heart does not break, nor his faith in life fade out, when he perceives how modest are the results, and how persistently man remains what he has been for sixty centuries, perhaps for a thousand generations."
Durant would add that the best preparation for understanding the problems of the present is to study the past-- for it is there where we will discover the true nature of humankind. Without knowledge of the past, there is no wisdom to guide us to the future. Ultimately, I believe, "Heroes of History" message is one that offers comfort:
“We need not close our eyes to the evils that challenge us- we should work undiscourageably to lessen them- but we may take strength from the achievements of the past; the splendor of our inheritance.”
I welcome others who have spotted similar lessons in "Heroes of History" to share them with the readers of this forum. It is indeed a book that bears and rewards repeated reading.
