Western Self-Contempt - by Benedict Beckeld (Hardcover)

About the Book

"A study of how and why oikophobia -- cultural self-hatred -- develops in Western societies"--

Book Synopsis

Western Self-Contempt travels through civilizations since antiquity, examining major political events and the literature of ancient Greece, Rome, France, Britain, and the United States, to study evidence of cultural self-hatred and its cyclical recurrence. Benedict Beckeld explores oikophobia, described by its coiner Sir Roger Scruton as "the felt need to denigrate the customs, culture and institutions that are identifiably 'ours, '" in its political and philosophical applications. Beckeld analyzes the theories behind oikophobia along with their historical sources, revealing why oikophobia is best described as a cultural malaise that befalls civilizations during their declining days.

Beckeld gives a framework for why today's society is so fragmented and self-critical. He demonstrates that oikophobia is the antithesis of xenophobia. By this definition, the riots and civil unrest in the summer of 2020 were an expression of oikophobia. Excessive political correctness that attacks tradition and history is an expression of oikophobia. Beckeld argues that if we are to understand these behaviors and attitudes, we must understand oikophobia as a sociohistorical phenomenon.

Western Self-Contempt is a systematic analysis of oikophobia, combining political philosophy and history to examine how Western civilizations and cultures evolve from naïve and self-promoting beginnings to states of self-loathing and decline. Concluding with a philosophical portrait of an increasingly interconnected Western civilization, Beckeld reveals how past events and ideologies, both in the US and in Europe, have led to a modern culture of self-questioning and self-rejection.

Review Quotes

Western Self-Contempt shows the need to properly scrutinize and, perhaps, redefine oikophobia (whether real or imagined) as an object of enquiry in its own right and, tied to it, it poses the issue of the role of scholars and intel- lectuals in understanding the Western world today--and in this lies the merit of the book.

-- "Journal of Modern History"

I found the book very entertaining and interesting and I think as a study of oikophobia in the West it is indispensable. Not only because this might be the only real book on the subject, but also because Beckeld shows in a very convincing way that the fall of civilizations is baked into their rise and that history seems to behave in helical-cyclical fashion because of human nature.

--Aron Flam "Dekonstruktiv kritik"

Benedict Beckeld refreshingly explains the phenomenon of oikophobia; his thoughts on Western self-hate are illuminating.

-- "Neue Zürcher Zeitung"

Western Self-Contempt is extremely important and timely, has amazing historical detail, and demonstrates an astonishing knowledge of the history of civilizations.

-- "Peter Boghossian"

By tracing the idea of intellectuals' self-contempt back to the beginning of Western civilisation, Beckeld shows how the phenomenon recurs cyclically: from ancient Greece and the Roman Empire to early modern France and England, up to today's United States in its role as world hegemon. Beckeld's analysis of oikophobia - and tragic view of history - enables a new foundation on which we can formulate what the intellectual's responsibility is.

-- "The Critic Magazine"

Western Self-Contempt discusses big picture ideas that often get lost in the abundance of detail one discovers when embarking on a study of the modern cultural revolution. Philosopher Benedict Beckeld examines a curious pattern seen throughout history where prosperous states, at the height of their success, become overwhelmed with self-contempt rooted in a belief that the prosperity and material abundance they enjoy, is merely a result of historical injustice.

-- "Woke Watch Canada"

Western Self-Contempt gets to the heart of perhaps the most salient cultural and political phenomenon among Western elites in the last half century.

-- "The American Mind"

Western Self-Contempt is an encouraging book. Its historical overview of each civilization's rise and fall and its chapters on relativism, positivism, and cyclical and progressive theory have philosophical depth. Interspersed throughout the argument are pithy aphorisms about the contemporary political scene that are a delightful bonus and inspiring alternative to the dismal orthodoxies of the present day.

-- "National Association of Scholars"

Beckeld dares to write what intelligent Americans think.

-- "Chronicles Magazine"

Western Self-Contempt is a seminal study that will have a special appeal to students of European political philosophy and cultural anthropology. Exceptionally well written, organized and presented, Western Self-Contempt is an extraordinary and unreservedly recommended addition to community, college, and university library Political Theory & Philosophy collections and supplemental curriculum studies lists.

-- "The Midwest Book Review"

About the Author

Benedict Beckeld holds a PhD in Philosophy and Classical Philology from the University of Heidelberg, Germany. He is the author of Die Notwendigkeit der Notwendigkeit, Art and Aesthetics, and Statements. Follow him on X @BenedictBeckeld.