Jonathan Powers - Evolution Evolving - iOpening Books - 2013

 

Jonathan Powers - Evolving Evolution ; Part One - Dr Erasmus Darwin - iOpening Books, 2013

 

Dr Erasmus Darwin (1731 - 1802) was grandfather of Charles Darwin and, as the author explains, "articulated his own evolutionary worldview" before his grandson published On the Origin of Species in 1859.

 

Erasmus was not the only early evolutionist to have links to Derby as Robert Waring Darwin and Herbert Spencer were also "linked to the same Midlands industrial town".

 

The author agrees with Paul Elliott that "this `evolutionary perspective` .. was a by-product of the belief in technological progress which accompanied the early industrial revolution - spreading from centres such as Derby, the Derwent Valley and Coalbrookdale to what became the great manufacturing centres of the Midlands and the North." He goes on to argue that "this perspective also influenced the character of their evolutionary views which...were distinctly and unrepentantly progressivist." 

 

The author is at pains to put Darwin into context and spends some time explaining how Darwins` idea fitted in with, or differed from, his philosophical forebears, going back at some points as far as Hippocrates and Aristotle. I believe this is useful, though once or twice I did feel we might be getting too much of a good thing.

 

Looking at the changing times in which Darwin lived, Mr Powers emphasises the social changes engendered by the Industrial Revolution. He points out that in the Middle Ages "it was enturely natural to see everything, as well as everyone, as having been planned to fit into their `proper places`", but argues that "the rise of a `merchant class` and the development of a Market Economy...began to destabilise the assumptions of the old order."

 

He points out that Darwin did not see his `evolutionism` as working against (his version of) Christianity, believing in a deity he variously referred to as The Great Architect, The Cause of Causes and his "celestial guide".

 

Frequent use is made of quotations from Darwins` poetry and while it`s not to my taste, I think it is useful to have these.    

 

 It is outside the scope of this review to discuss all the issues and ideas contained in this booklet so I shall content myself with the observation that Erasmus Darwin was no numpty and neither is Jonathan Powers. 

 

We turn now to reactions to Darwins` beliefs. The most significant of these came when Darwin and like-minded bods formed a group called the Derby Society for Political Information. In the great tradition of these things they  held meetings on licensed premises and eventually produced their `manifesto`, a broadsheet addressed "To the Friends of Free Enquiry and the General Good`. Initially this was not deemed controversial and indeed it was published in the Chester Chronicle with accompanying editorial comment endorsing its` "genuine sentiments of freedom, liberality and truth" which the writer believed would be welcomed by "every friend to the happiness and prosperity of the people".

 

The document appears to have been a philosophical treatise on the nature and purposes of `true government`. While it did accuse the British Government of "deep and alarming abuses" it was careful to qualify this with the observations that "our situation is comfortable, compared with that of many European kingdoms" and that "as the times are in some degree moderate, they ought to be free from riot and confusion". However, the closing paragraph, which invited "friends of freedom...to form similar societies and to act with unanimity and firmness till the people be too wise to be imposed upon" was treated by the authorities as an incitement to rebellion. In truth, the aim of the signatories was only that their followers should seek  "influence in the government"..."commensurate with their dignity and importance". So, campaigners seeking to bring pressuere to bear on  government rather than revolutionaries seeking to overthrow it.

 

They lived in turbulent times, however. Darwin, a Republican, had initially welcomed the French Revolution, and had twice turned down the chance to become the King`s Personal Physician. Some reaction was probably inevitable.

 

When the Morning Chronicle  published the Derby Societys` declaration both the publisher and printer were arrested for spreading "seditious libel". 

 

In a comparable case the previous year Thomas Muir, an Edinburgh lawyer, had been transported to Botany Bay for 14 years when charged with sedition. These defendants were  more fortunate. The jury initially attempted to mitigate the offence by delvering a verdict that they were guilty of publishing the material in question but "without malicious intent." The judge rejected their verdict as invalid, only to have them return a second verdict of `Not Guilty."

 

Although Mr P does not mention it, the case anticipated in many ways the 1794 Treason Trials ( http://en.wikipedia/wiki.org1794_Treason_Trials/ ), a set of cases in which jurors rejected attempts to use the Courts to stifle debate. In my view, these are cases which should be more widely known, though I must admit I was unaware of them myself until a week or two ago ! 

 

All this and more is to be found in Mr P`s worthy tome. In places I personally felt there was a bit too much detail, but there again I`m probably a very different person to the author. Overall, I found it a satisfying read which only occasionally lapses into academic jargon.

 

More importantly, for me it brought to life a person from history who was previously just a name to me. I`m not sure where you can purchase a copy online - I like to think that is sold clandestinely, possibly in a plain wrapper, in secret hotbeds of latter-day radicalism located somewhere near Derby City Centre. That would be quite glamorous in it`s way.

 

If such networks are not available to you, there are a few of Jonathan Powers` I-Opening Booklets for sale in the gift shop at Derby Museum !

 

 

 

   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Evolution Evolving

I`ve neglected this blog far more than I meant to in recent times.

In the unlikely event that anyone`s missed my humble offerings during that time, you might wish to know that I`m currently working on a review of  `Evolution Evolving ; Part One - Dr Erasmus Darwin` by Jonathan Powers.

I`m only part way through Mr P`s booklet but am hoping to post a review very soon.

W R Lester - Unemployment and the Land - United Committee for the Taxation of Land Values

W R Lester - Unemployment and the Land - United Committee for the Taxation of Land Values, 4th edition,  1933

"All great truths are simple truths, and all great problems can be reduced to their simple elements, however complicated they may appear at first sight." - W R Lester

In my previous posting on this blog, we looked at the thoughts of Frank Dupuis and I mentioned that he found the answers to many of his questions in W R Lester`s Unemployment and the Land.

Since I own a copy of said work, it seems logical to look at that now.

W R Lester was, I believe,  William Richard Lester, born 1860, an admirer of American political philosopher Henry George. He was an election candidate for the Liberal Party* in 1910 and the author of a number of pamphlets, most, if not all,  of  which were connected with the question of land value taxation.

If anyone has any further information on the literate Liberal Lester, I`d be glad to hear from you.

Unemployment and the Land is a pleasure to read. Mr L puts his case clearly and succinctly, arguing his points well.

His argument is that unemployment is a relatively modern, artificial phenomenon and that it`s existence shows that "our civilization has taken a wrong turning". The roots of this modern malaise can, he believes, be traced back to the enclosure of common land in the Middle Ages. 

"Unemployment is no part of the natural order as many assume it to be" he asserts.

His arguments and opinions do not easily fit into neat little categories of  right/left politics. He identifies the monopolisation of land ownership by a wealthy few as the source of the problem he wishes to address, but is no opponent of capitalism. He argues that "it is futile to blame Goverments for not `providing` work. They cannot do it." but endorses a statement made by Henry George ;

"If there is want, if there is scarcity, if there are men who cannot find employment, if there are people starving in the midst of plenty, is it not simply because what the Creator intended for the use of man has been made the private property of the few ?"

One area of his thinking will have been of particular interest to Frank Dupuis, which is the effect of imposition of western practises on African societies and, by extension, on other areas of what was then the empire ;

"To-day this process of enclosure, under another name, is proceeding before our eyes among native tribes in Colonial possessions, with the same dire consequences...So long as the natives retained their tribal lands, workless men did not and could not exist."

He goes on to detail hearings on the matter under the name of the Native Labour Commission (Kenya), 1912 - 13 ;

"Settler after settler came before the Commission and demanded in the most precise terms that the natives should be forced out of  `reserves` to work  for wages by cutting down their land so that they should have less than they could live on...The process of reducing men to unemployment and poverty is here stated in all its` nakedness." 

Do his ideas make sense ? For myself, I have to say I am not someone who is readily persuaded by ideas that have never been tried anywhere, or to the glib assumption that a proposed course of action will have no unintended consequences. At the same time, if everyone thought like that very little would ever change ! For the moment then, I count myself as sympathetic but unconvinced.

Assuming one accepts his arguments regarding the enclosure of common land, one`s response could vary quite a bit, from joining, say,  The Ramblers or the Open Spaces Society (my own preferred option) ,  to storming the barricades like some latter-day revolutionary ! Taxing the value of land is only one of a variety of choices one could make.

Nonetheless, Lester is a provocative thinker and an advocate of reasoned and orderly change, so for that reason he is, in my opinion, well worth a read.

Footnote

For a more recent look at the question of land value taxation, this article may be of interest ;

Unsigned - `Land Value Tax "Should be Examined"` - 14 Sep 2013 at www.expressandstar.com

( http://www.expressandstar.com/business/uk-money/2013/09/14/land-value-tax-should-be-examined ) 

* The Liberal Party that Lester knew has two modern descendants, the Liberal Democrat Party ( www.libdems.org.uk ) and the Liberal Party ( www.liberal.org.uk ) .


   
  

Quotation Station - Frank Dupuis

"The contrasts to be observed between the effects of the depression in Africa and England were striking enough to arouse my curiosity. In Africa the collapse of export markets meant bankruptcy to many planters and some traders and had aroused discontent among native producers but no African was either destitute or even badly in want. The `unemployment problem` simply did not exist.

To find in England, where people were suppposed to be so much richer and wiser than `natives`, multitudes depending upon public assistance even for food, and begging for hard work as if it were a charity to be dispensed by the generous, was startling. It impressed me as unnatural although my English friends, to whom it was customary, did not regard it so. They were satisfied that all differences between England and Africa could be explained by industrialisation. But they could not tell me how.

I thought they condemned in advance any suggestion that a more primitive society might have some lesson to teach them. Was not the black man a poor brother in need of their help and guidance ? As I knew that the black man was just the same as other people and quite capable of providing for himself, I was less disposed to accept assurances which others seemed to pass without question."

Frank Dupuis - A Planter`s Story, in `Land and Liberty` magazine, 1957 

Frank Dupuis spent nearly twenty years in Africa. He may originally have gone there on military service, but at some point he took up agricultural pursuits, returning to England in 1931.

He found the answers to his questions in W R Lester`s Unemployment and the Land and as a result became involved in a group called the United Commmittee for the Taxation of Land Values, contributing to their periodical Land and Liberty regularly.

For the moment we will simply note that the United Committee was a body that drew inspiration from the works of American philosopher Henry George and was not an organisation that can be easily classified as being either left or right wing. It still exists today, under the name the Henry George Foundation.

The quote above is interesting in many ways and I suspect different people will take different things from it. I am quite happy for that to be the case and have no intention of  interposing my own thoughts and interpretations.

Quotation Station ; Jim Al-Khalili

"As a physicist, I have sent much of my life pondering the nature of reality, the laws of physics and the origin of the Universe, and so I have developed a strong rationalist, scientific, evidence-based outlook on life.

 Understanding that I only exist because of a wonderful cosmic accident means I truly appreciate just how lucky we all are to exist at all, and so we should make the most of our time on earth and not waste this brief opportunity to shine as brightly as the stars that created the atoms we are all made of .

That for me is what defines Humanism.".

Jim Al-Khalili

Footnote
For more from Jim, see Nick Osmond-  `Another Humanist - "Believing in God is Fine by Me" says Jim Al-Khalili` - posted at http://bookshelvesandbrownale.blogspot.com on 11 April 2013.

Quotation Station ; Addams and Goethe - Two Views on Patriotism

Unless our conception of patriotism is progressive, it cannot hope to embody the real affection and the real interest of the nation.


Jane Addams



There is no such thing as a patriotic art or a patriotic science. Both art and science belong, like every higher good, to all the world and can be fostered only by the free flow of mutual influence among all contemporaries, with constant regard for all we have and know of the past.

Goethe




In the interest of variety, I`ve gone for a different approach to Quotation Station this time, with differing views on patriotism from Civil Rights pioneer Jane Addams and German writer Goethe.


Clearly Addams, a noted social reformer and internationalist, has no problems reconciling patriotism with progressivism whereas Goethe appears to see them as mutually exclusive.


It may be that the two meant very different things when they spoke of `patriotism`, with Addams perhaps envisaging something rather more outgoing than the insular nationalism that Goethe appears to decry.


For myself, I see no inherent contradiction between  patriotism, progressivism and internationalism, and I can raise a glass to "the free flow of mutual influence among all contemporaries, with constant regard for all we have and know of the past."


But what do I know ? Form your own opinion.

The Philosophy of G Lowes Dickinson

G Lowes Dickinson - Plato and His Dialogues - Pelican - 1947 (Reprint)

I`ve mentioned before that my knowledge of history and philosophy is largely based on old and often second-hand books. This is a case in point.

The book is based on a series of talks given by the author aimed at "men and women who are not and do not mean to be scholars, who have not much time for reading". Sounds good to me !

The author gets off to a strong start, acknowledging that his hero "is in some respects the greaest of revolutionaries, in others the greatest of reactionaries".  He infers that he has some differences with Plato, finding an element of despair in the philosophers` later work "and, even worse, a recourse to intolerance and persecution." He differs sharply with Plato on this issue ("by that road there is no way out") and affirms his own optimism and belief in liberty.

He looks at the time and place that formed Plato`s character, quoting Thucydides ; "The whole Hellenic world was in commotion ; in every city the chiefs of the democracy and of the oligarchy were struggling." Against this background, the young Plato saw his mentor Socrates imprisoned and condemned to death.

After looking at contemporary accounts of the life and character of Socrates he moves on to Plato`s dialogues.

Plato`s works were written in the form of conversations, a little like plays, in which two or more characters attempt to get to grips with the issues of the day. As a tribute to his mentor, Plato always makes Socrates the central character and portrays him as an incisive questioner who exposes inconsistencies in the arguments of others and  makes them question their attitudes and values. 

Disappointingly,the passages Dickinson quotes do not really show us Socrates the opponent of hypocrisy, but often seem to be mere exchanges of courtesies by no means essential to the matter in hand. Terms such as `charming`, `beautiful` and `delightful` are bandied about, but we are no further on with actual questions of philosophy.

Now we move on to a pet hate of mine. Plato`s Republic is the book in which he sets out his vision of an ideal state.  It relates to a form of social organisation that has never existed, almost certainly never will, and which probably wouldn`t be desireable in any case. Many of  Plato`s notions concerning this `ideal` state seem quite ridiculous or unworkable to modern eyes, and there is some debate among scholars  as to his true intentions. It is profoundly anti-democratic, mainly because the one democracy he knew well, his native Athens, was profoundly flawed.

Dickinson then moves on to a later work, The Laws, written by an older and rather more world-weary Plato. At this point, Plato  has effectively turned his back on autocracy and, according to Dickinson, now advocates "a moderate middle class democracy". Dickinson notes that Plato "gives a certain preponderance to the richer classes", but also seeks to avoid too glaring a disparity between rich and poor. Because The Laws is not concerned with an ideal society, but with proposals for a real one, it is open to being reformed or improved in a way that The Republic was not.

Unfortunately, once we get on to detail, Plato`s authoritarian streak runs riot once again. There are stipulations as to who should marry, at what age and a great many other such suggestions, including a proposal for compulsory marriage with a range of penalties for men who remain single !

Dickinson himself was an unapologetic utopian and at times I did question his judgement.

Dickinson explains in his introduction that he has made few amendments to the texts of his original talks, but has expanded on the quotations used. This is glaringly obvious, as his quotations from Plato and indeed other sources are often of inordinate length and could usefully have been trimmed down. Despite this, Plato and his Dialogues is a slender volume.

In my view, this book represents an opportunity missed. While I can see that The Republic and The Laws needed to be discussed, there seems no reason why the author could not have added material on Plato`s other works, and I for one would have favoured a lot more emphasis on dialectic.*

I`ve owned this book for a while and if I`m any judge it had more than one owner before me. I think it may be time for this one to find a new home !


*Dialectic is a method by which two or more peoples seek to establish the truth about a particular matter by means of reasoned argument. It is very different from debate in the formal sense (in which the interested parties arrived with a fixed opinion and the emphasis is on `winning`) or from rhetoric. The phrase `dialectic` is often associated with Marxism, but is not unique to that school of thought, which it predates by many centuries, and indeed some strands of Marxist dialectic are not true dialectic at all.












  

The History of V Gordon Childe

This will be not so much a review as a collection of observations and thoughts of mine inspired by reading V Gordon Childe`s book `History`.

I should probably make clear that, while I am interested in history and philosophy, most of my reading on these subjects has been from old and usually second-hand books and I can hardly claim to be at the cutting edge in these matters. I could not make any useful contribution to a debate on string theory or post-modernism and, indeed, I don`t want to. Anyone with a greater knowledge of history/philosophy will no doubt find my humble efforts laughable, but if it gives them a few moments  of  innocent amusement I do not particularly mind.

V Gordon Childe was a historian with a particular interest in archaeology and pre-history and is still well-respected today. He held Marxist views and it may be as well if I give a simplified explanation of the Marxist view of history. I am not myself a Marxist and anyone looking to discuss Marx`s politics would probably be better served elsewhere, but I will add a brief footnote on Childe`s approach to Marxism in case it is of interest (see below).

Karl Marx believed, rather grandly, that he had "solved the riddle of history". As I understand it, Marxism is quite a complex belief system incorporating aspects of politics, history, economics and philosophy. For our purposes there are two important aspects I want to mention at this point.

Firstly, Marx  argued that the history of western nations could be understood as a series of incidents in which power was taken from one class by another (in English terms, e.g. the transfer of power between the King on the one hand and the Barons on the other at Runnymede, which was formalised in the Magna Carta).

Secondly, he further stipulated that these changes only came about when prior advances in economic and other forms of development meant that the circumstances for change were fortuitous, i.e. if an old aristocracy were superseded by if a growing and newly assertive middle class of merchants.

Another view, one which I personally find more convincing, would be that the same incidents were all events in which power was diffused more widely as societies evolved new forms of organisation.

Many Marxists have queried how fully Vere Gordon Childe had assimilated Marxist politics into his work. My own feeling is that they had a point. Whether that`s necessarily a bad thing depends on your point of view !

As I understand it, Childe`s thought evolved as he went through life.

Like many Marxists,  for a time he apparently subscribed to a clumsy, mechanistic understanding of Marx - probably believing in a world in which man`s destiny is determined by vast, impersonal forces of history.

Subsequently he developed a more rounded view, arguing that overall patterns of human development could be discerned but allowing for considerable variation at the level of the individual. That seems to be where he was at the time of this book, presenting quite a rounded view of human existence. For instance, although he rejects the old-fashioned view that history is made by  `Great Men` ,  the view championed by Thomas Carlyle, Sir Charles Oman and others, he is careful to acknowledge it`s positive aspects ; "To reject the Great Man interpretation of history, is not to belittle the significance of great men...Men have lived, and do live, greatly, and it is one of history`s functions to preserve this greatness and keep these personalities alive." 

Ultimately,  I gather he went on to reconsider even some of the positions expounded in this book, although he continued to be a staunch believer in human progress. As far as I know, he continued to subscribe to some semblance of a Marxist worldview throughout his life, though clearly within that framework he developed his ideas and understanding as he went along. 

At this point in his life, he had rejected a deterministic view of human development, i.e., he did not believe, as many Marxists have,  that mankind was making it`s way to a pre-ordained outcome. "If history be not following a prescribed route but is making a path as it proceeds, the search for a terminus is naturally vain", he comments. Although he was a member of the original, now defunct, Communist Party of Great Britain, this book does not expound the virtues of  a  socialist utopia in which a classless society has been achieved and which therefore remains static, but looks  more towards "a society in which men consciously and voluntarily co-operate in a collective effort to extend further the productive forces and the creative activities these liberate. Such an order would not be static but consciously and intentionally creative. It might then be regarded as the true beginning of rational history."

In general, Childe`s History is an accessible and thought-provoking overview of human history. It is largely free from Marxist jargon and for the most part his views are not presented obtrusively. Some of the points he makes regarding human history and development have been  shared by non-Marxist thinkers such as Winwood Reade and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Indeed, he makes the point that on one, relatively analytical, matter Karl Marx, right-wing economist Adam Smith and constitutionalist Walter Bagehot were all in agreement !

The last  chapter is rather heavy on the Marxist sources, though as we`ve seen he seems capable of transcending his influences. Some Marxists will find this book disappointing, but I think it should be approached with an open mind. More to the point, you can pick up second-hand copies fairly cheaply (mine cost 99p !) and it does not take long to read !

FOOTNOTE

I don`t particularly feel the need to defend Childe`s political views in every respect, but it may not hurt to give some context.

I`ve  stated that he was a member of the original CPGB (another, quite distinct, body uses that name today). In his day there was no Eurocommunism, no New Left. The party he knew too often supported the Soviet line, even during the Stalin period. For sure, there were periodic internal rebellions but there were no John Pecks or Ray Suttons in those days, no-one (as far as I know) making a sustained and determined effort for change from within. Normally, CPGB members either rebelled over key issues whilst remaining loyal at other times, or left the Party altogether.

Turning to Wikipedia, we learn that Childe`s biographer Sally Green believed his views "were never dogmatic, always idiosyncratic and were continually changing throughout his life" and that "Childe`s Marxism frequently differed from contemporary `orthodox` Marxism."

Marxist Neil Faulkner is quoted in the same piece as describing Childes as someone "heavily influenced by Marxism"  but not a true Marxist as he (Childes)  did not think in terms of class struggle as an agent of social change. For what it`s worth, that`s the impression I formed from my reading of History.

I don`t know if this footnote really clarifies things much but  hope it`s of interest anyway.

Happy Birthday, Dr Du Bois !

W E B Du Bois was born 23 February 1868.

What would he make of our world today ?

Over at www.webdubois.org , Robert W Williams comments "In a world that can be improved to promote the highest ideals of knowledge, peace and love, I would like to think that the progressive spirit of Du Bois lives on."

He asks himself where this spirit can be found and considers the implications of what we used to call `new technology`; "High-tech communications permit wider and speedier interactivity across the globe itself. It is an interconnectivity which challenges what we mean by the terms `global` and `local`."

His comments are echoed by the writer of  an editorial in a recent British Humanist Association newsletter (Unsigned - We Are Citizens of the World - BHA Newsletter 30 January 2012, at  www.humanism.org.uk ) ;

"We are finding new ways of keeping in touch with each other. This, at times, can make the world seem very small and enables our actions to have a much wider impact. New technology and ways of communicating constantly remind us that we are citizens of the world."

Online campaigning groups are everywhere it seems. It`s worth stressing that these may be quite different in character according to the time and place in which they find themselves; Move On in the US is firmly rooted in the Democratic Party while 38 Degrees, it`s sister organisation in the UK, where distrust of politicians is more widespread, is viewed by many ( most ?) of it`s supporters as an alternative to existing political structures.

 However, the point made by Dr Williams and our anonymous humanist, that the local has become global, retains it`s validity it seems to me.

Are there pitfalls to be found ? Inevitably, new forms of organisation throw up new difficulties and it`s worth remembering that staff of these organisations tend to be appointed rather than elected.

Dr Williams has another point to make ; "I am also aware that there is a digital divide which separates the electronically outfitted, jacked in and techno savvy from those less technologically equipped  and trained. It is a divide that spotlights the unequal material relationships in which we as humans are implicated. Such disparities would probably alarm Du Bois, and might have provided him with further evidence of poverty amidst plenty (or maybe because of it)." 

These concerns have implications for practical matters such as the provision of public services. Dr Williams` comments reminded me of an article I read recently by Ayub Khan,  an official connected with the Library Service in Warwickshire, UK ; "There are still millions of people who have never used the internet, many of whom are what society politely calls `disadvantaged` . Around 23% of households don`t have an internet connection. For the unconnected, real libraries...are a way of joining the digital world and not feeling so left behind." (Ayub Khan - Where Next for Libraries, www.booktrust.org.uk , 2 Feb 2012 , posted in the blog section) .

Dr Du Bois led a long and active life characterised by many idealogical twists and turns. Many individuals and organisations claim continuity with his work. A variety of schools of thought, some mutually exclusive, claim him as their precursor or their adherent. Some have accused him of inconsistency, but whatever changes of outlook he may have embraced, his "progressive spirit" remained constant. If we are looking, as Dr Williams suggests, for the true spirit of the man then in addition to the `usual suspects` , maybe we should also look among the less exalted souls campaiging in support of local services and to regenerate run-down neighbourhoods.

I can think of no better way to end this article than by quoting Dr Williams once again ;

"Dr Du Bois` spirit remains vital and cogent even today."

Happy Birthday, W E B Du Bois !

Thanks once again to Nottingham-based author Dr Tony Shaw for use of his pictures. Visit him at http://tonyshaw3.blogspot.com .















  

A New Year, A New Approach

As I`ve noted before, I haven`t really been giving this blog the attention it deserves for quite a while.

Part of the problem was that my original plan (to run it as a tribute blog to the late W E B Du Bois) was a little over-ambitious, particularly given that my work and family commitments are considerable.

I`ve decided this year to turn it into something a bit more practical and achievable.

To do that, I`m returning to one of the better slogans of my mis-spent youth, `Think Globally and Act Locally` (as you might guess, I was young in the 1980s !). 

I already post some pieces on grassroots/locally based community groups etc at Angel Pavement ( http://angpav.blogspot.com ) and Bookshelves and Brown Ale ( http://bookshelvesandbrownale.blogspot.com ) so I plan to give this blog an international slant to complement those, whilst still using it now and again to comment on matters relating to Du Bois and his associates. Also, while my Angel Pavement and Bookshelves stuff tends to be newsy with little comment, this blog may well tend to be a little freer (is that a word ?) and more discussion-orientated.

I generally avoid party politics and rarely comment on the big topical issues of the day, as, quite frankly, there are more than enough self-appointed pundits cluttering up the web without me adding to their number !

Anyway, to make a positive start, I thought I`d share with you these rather fine images, which come from Dr Tony Shaw (  http://tonyshaw3.blogspot.com ) ,  and which he has kindly given me permission to use. If you have literary leanings yourself, you may well wish to give his blog a visit.

William Henry Melish on W E B Du Bois, W E B Du Bois on Henry Melish

W E B Du Bois on William Howard Melish  ;

"Howard Melish is on of the few Christian clergyman for whom I have the highest respect. Honest and conscientious, believing sincerely in much of the Christian dogma, which I reject, but working honestly and without hypocrisy, for the guidance of the young, for the uplift of the poor and ignorant, and for the betterment of his city and his country...Here is a young man of ideal character, of impeccable morals ; a hard worker, especially among the poor and unfortunate."

Melish, who tells his own story in a book, Strength for Struggle, was a priest who ran a church called Holy Trinity in Brooklyn Heights. W E B Du Bois lived nearby and it would seem Melish was a fairly regular visitor to the home of W E B and Shirley Graham Du Bois. 

Melish seems to have held Communist political beliefs whilst remaining a Christian himself. I`m not in a position to comment on how he reconciled the two, or on his stances on particular issues, but it does seem clear that he was pro-Soviet (not just anti- the Cold War) at a very ugly time in Soviet history. Inevitably, he became the target of McCarthyite harassment which prevented many of his activities - moves to remove him from his Church went as far as the New York Supreme Court on two separate occasions -  but he continued to be involved in many issues, working with single mothers and later joining a Civil Rights organisation, the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. 

Du Bois in the Autobiography portrays Melish as an earnest, hardworking priest persecuted because his church was attracting "workers and Negroes". Others have speculated that the chief persecutor of the Melishes, James P De Wolfe, had sectarian motives. Undoubtedly, the Rev Melish did much good in his life, but there seems little doubt that his political views were, to say the least, questionable. For myself I would hope that most people could recognise that he did a lot of good in his life, but let`s not pretend he was perfect !

In September 1963, the Rev. Melish flew to Ghana to address a Memorial Service for Du Bois. On his return, he had cheaply produced booklets made up containing the text of his speech, which he apparently sold for small sums in the Brooklyn area to raise funds for his church. My copy was obtained fairly cheaply and from what I`ve seen, quite a few have survived to this day.

The Rev. Melish both opened and closed his address with quotes from a piece by Walt Whitman, a poet Du Bois admired.

The rest is an amiable enough trundle through the life of Du Bois, certainly worth a read.

 I was  puzzled by a couple of references to incidents I don`t recall having seen mentioned elsewhere - one is a reference to hostility to research work done by Du Bois and  

others in `Lownes` (Lowndes ?) County - "Du Bois and his team of investigators ...met resistance, harassment and shotgun blasts"  - and  the other concerns the Atlanta Riots, which he says left the first Mrs Du Bois "injured in a manner that contributed to her invalidism in later life" and refers to their daughter Yolande "hiding in a stair well". I`ve checked against the Autobiography and David Levering Lewis` Biography but cannot see any reference to these details, which I don`t recall having seen in any other books by/about Du Bois either. Maybe someone else can cast light on this ?

Elsewhere, he refers to Du Bois standing for public office later in life for the Progressive Party rather than the American Labor Party. I have been able to resolve this ; Aptheker in his notes to Against Racism states that the American Labor Party was a name used by the Progressive Party in New York only, so presumably that`s the explanation.

At the end of the booklet are a selection of tributes to Du Bois from various bodies, including the NAACP Board of Directors ( "His contributions to the ageless struggle for human rights were imperishable. His passage leaves a great void which there is no immediate prospect of filling." ), an interesting one from Madison S Jones at the New York Commission of Human Rights ( "I had the honor of working with him.. I am proud to say he gave me a great deal of counsel, advice and guidance...The world is better for his massive contribution towards freedom for all." ) and one from Malcolm Cowley, President of the National Institute of Arts and Letters ( "The Institute has lost the most distinguished member whose passing will be mourned by the world of letters" ).

As we approach another anniversary of the death of W E B Du Bois, it`s interesting to reflect on his long life, prolific writing career and dedication to progressive causes.

My intentions in running this blog are pretty basic. If I can demonstrate that it`s possible to build up an interesting Du Bois collection even if, like me, you`re perennially short of both time and money, and if I can encourage others - particularly the young - to take an interest in Du Bois` life and work, I`ll be happy.

On a slightly more ambitious note, I would hope it`s possible for people of goodwill to build on the positive aspects of Du Bois` work whilst accepting that he had flaws - we all have flaws, after all ! If I voice the odd criticism, that`s the reason.  At the end of the day,  uncritical appreciation is not appreciation at all !

Quotations #2 - Du Bois on Jefferson Davis

In June 1890, Du Du Bois graduated with honors in philosophy, and was asked to make a speech at his `commencement`, which I assume is the US equivalent of graduation. Du Bois, a man of mixed race, chose the tricky subject of Jefferson Davis, a champion of slavery and the first and only President of the Confederate States of America.


The next two paragraphs are from Mark Stafford`s W E B du Bois : Scholar and Activist (Chelsea House, New York, 1989. In the Black Americans of Achievement series) ;


`Du Bois` speech...was as impassioned as it was caustic. Davis, he said, satisfied the nation`s hunger for an individualist who was also an oppressor. Du Bois called the southern leader a "peculiar champion of a people fighting to be free in order that another people should not be free". Like all "strong men" he sought "the advance of a part of the world at the expense of the whole...it has thus happened that advance in civilization has always been handicapped by shortsighted national selfishness."


The speech received an overwhelming response. "Du Bois handled his difficult and hazardous subject with absoloute good taste, great moderation and almost contemptuous fairness," The Nation reported. "He is an excellent scholar in every way, and altogether the best black man that has come to Cambridge" added a Harvard professor.`


Stafford states that as a result of this speech the American Historical Association invited Du Bois to address one of its` meetings, and also  quotes further praise for the speech from the New York Independent.

The full text of Jefferson Davis as a Representative of Civilization can be found in a Du Bois anthology edited by Herbert Aptheker, Against Racism ; Unpublished Essays 1887 - 1961, University of Massachusetts Press, 1985.

It`s worth pointing out that, while passages of the speech are certainly caustic, the Dr was on the whole even-handed and even, to a degree, diplomatic, stressing that "I wish to consider not the man, but the type of civilization which his life represented ; its foundation is the idea of the strong man - individualism coupled with the rule of might - and it is this idea that has made the logic of even modern history, the cool logic of the club".

He also pointed out that Davis was "a naturally brave and generous man" and that "such a type is not wholly evil or fruitless : the world has needed and will need its Jefferson Davises ; but such a type is incomplete and can never serve its best purpose until checked by its complementary ideas".

Clearly it is a youthful work, and elsewhere in the same speech we find some rather dated ideas, and some rather dated language. Some later commentators, particularly the more radical ones, find it rather submissive and `accomodationist` . They may have a point, though personally I think it is partly his choice of words that gives that impression.

However that may be, the essential message seems pretty clear, and in my view still relevant and thought-provoking. Du Bois summarised his aims in making the speech  in this way ; "the submission of the Strong to the advance of all - not in mere aimless sacrifice, but recognizing the fact that `to no one type of mind is it given to discern the totality of truth`, that civilization cannot afford to lose the contribution of the very least of nations for its full development."

FOOTNOTE

It is interesting to note that some of these sentiments, voiced by Du Bois so long ago, appear to anticipate areas of feminist thinking from the `60s and `70s. We know that many feminists from this era have asserted that they took much of their thinking from the American Civil Rights movement*. It would be interesting to know if Dr Du Bois, well-known as an early advocate of women`s rights, had a particular influence there. 

* This point is made by Jenny Bourne in her  Towards an Anti-Racist Feminism ( IRR, London, 1984). Jo O`Brien makes similar comments in the conclusion to her Women`s Liberation in Labour History : A Case Study From Nottingham (BRPF, Nottingham, 1972), though her comments go more to her motivation in writing her pamphlet, which is about English working class women in the 19th century, than to it`s content.

Bourne`s pamphlet is still available, at a very reasonable price, from the Institute of Race Relations, London. I don`t run this blog as an adjunct to our business, but as it happpens, I do have a copy of O`Brien`s pamphlet for sale ; 

http://www.antiqbook.com/books/bookinfo.phtml?o=hoonal&bnr=35

but just to re-iterate, her comments on feminism and civil rights are only a small part of a pamphlet largely concerned wth other matters.