Harvard Classics Volume 28 / Essays English and American

Metadata

Gutenberg ID

21962

Title

Harvard Classics Volume 28 / Essays English and American

Language

en

Book source

Project Gutenberg

Description max 80 words

This volume presents a collection of seminal essays by English and American thinkers, including Thackeray, Huxley, Arnold, and Thoreau. The texts explore profound themes such as the nature of universities, the role of poetry, the elevation of the laboring classes, and the principles of democracy. With introductions and notes, this anthology offers a timeless examination of culture, society, and the human condition.

Summary up to 500 words

Edited by Charles W. Eliot, *Harvard Classics Volume 28* assembles a profound collection of essays from the 18th and 19th centuries that challenge readers to reconsider the balance between authority and individual liberty. The volume opens with William Makepeace Thackeray's biographical sketch of Jonathan Swift, exploring the Dean's complex relationship with power, ambition, and his role as a moral commentator on human folly. Following this, Thomas H. Huxley delivers a vigorous defense of the intellectual elevation of the laboring classes. He argues that democracy thrives only when the masses are educated, asserting that social order relies on the moral and intellectual progress of all citizens rather than the suppression of the majority. Huxley dismantles the prejudice that the poor are incapable of higher thought, contending that religion and society rest on principles accessible to every mind. He warns against caste systems based on wealth or rank, which alienate men from one another and exalt the material over the spiritual. Instead, he advocates for a society where merit is rewarded and where every individual has a chance to climb from humble origins to positions of responsibility. The collection also features Matthew Arnold's reflections on the study of poetry and contributions from John Ruskin on art and culture. Abraham Lincoln's thoughts on democracy further enrich the discourse, emphasizing the necessity of truth and integrity in public life. Together, these works advocate for a community grounded in reason and love, where the dignity of the individual is preserved against arbitrary power and social prejudice. The essays collectively suggest that the true essence of democracy is not merely a political classification but a clear pathway for talent and a society where public opinion is purified to support the growth of worthy leaders. Ultimately, the volume calls for a reconstruction of society based on cooperation and the recognition that humanity, not brute force or inherited status, is the foundation of a just and stable order.

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Categories

• Essays