released 7/1/2010

In this Archive Feature from Volume 103 of the Journal, Eric Miller, author of Hope in a Scattering Time: A Life of Christopher Lasch, discusses the late historian and social critic Christopher Lasch’s intense commitment to understand the logic of American cultural confusion. After an early period of literary ambition, Lasch studied at Harvard University and came to see his calling to see and communicate what is really happening in society. He became concerned about the analysis and knowledge of history because he recognized that without understanding how reality and particular circumstances came to be, there would be little hope for positive change. Lasch observed the changes within the progressive tradition in which he was raised by his progressive parents and sought to understand why they were happening, especially the losses in the social and communal aspects of the tradition. He searched out these issues with seriousness and passion, not self-consciously, but with a kind of integrity even those who disagreed with him could appreciate. Miller traces the roots of Lasch’s critique to a sense of the corruption in the world whose manifestations could only be challenged when they were recognized as such.

20 minutes

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