Irving Babbitt Quotes

A collection of quotes by Irving Babbitt.

Irving Babbitt (1865-1933) was an influential American intellectual, literary critic, and professor. He was born in Dayton, Ohio, and later attended Harvard University, where he studied classics before joining the faculty as a professor. Babbitt played a crucial role in shaping the intellectual and cultural climate of his time.

As one of the leading figures of the New Humanist movement, Babbitt focused on critiquing the excesses of modernity and advocating for a return to traditional values and moral discipline. He believed that the decline of civilization resulted from the erosion of ethical standards and the dominance of materialistic ideologies. Babbitt's work emphasized the importance of transcendent values and the cultivation of character and virtue to counteract this decline.

In 1894, Babbitt became a founding member of the modern language department at Harvard, where he taught French literature and lectured on a variety of subjects, including philosophy, humanism, and American literature. He championed the ideas of the Enlightenment thinkers and sought to reinvigorate their principles in contemporary society.

Babbitt's most influential work, "Rousseau and Romanticism" (1919), examined the destructive consequences of Jean-Jacques Rousseau's philosophy on modern culture. He contended that Rousseau's emphasis on personal autonomy and emotional indulgence led to the devaluation of reason and the erosion of moral values.

Irving Babbitt's writings and teachings left a lasting impact on American conservatism, cultural criticism, and educational philosophy. He offered a nuanced perspective on the crucial role of moral education and the preservation of timeless values in the face of modernity's challenges.

Perhaps as good a classification as any of the main types is

Perhaps as good a classification as any of the main types is that of the three lusts distinguished by traditional Christianity - the lust of knowledge, the lust of sensation, and the lust of power.

The democratic idealist is prone to make light of the whole

The democratic idealist is prone to make light of the whole question of standards and leadership because of his unbounded faith in the plain people.

Faith

The humanitarian lays stress almost solely upon breadth of k

The humanitarian lays stress almost solely upon breadth of knowledge and sympathy.

Knowledge

We must not, however, be like the leaders of the great roman

We must not, however, be like the leaders of the great romantic revolt who, in their eagerness to get rid of the husk of convention, disregarded also the humane aspiration.

Romantic

A person who has sympathy for mankind in the lump, faith in

A person who has sympathy for mankind in the lump, faith in its future progress, and desire to serve the great cause of this progress, should be called not a humanist, but a humanitarian, and his creed may be designated as humanitarianism.

Faith

Since every man desires happiness, it is evidently no small

Since every man desires happiness, it is evidently no small matter whether he conceives of happiness in terms of work or of enjoyment.

Happiness

Act strenuously, would appear to be our faith, and right thi

Act strenuously, would appear to be our faith, and right thinking will take care of itself.

Faith

Tell him, on the contrary, that he needs, in the interest of

Tell him, on the contrary, that he needs, in the interest of his own happiness, to walk in the path of humility and self-control, and he will be indifferent, or even actively resentful.

Happiness

Inasmuch as society cannot go on without discipline of some

Inasmuch as society cannot go on without discipline of some kind, men were constrained, in the absence of any other form of discipline, to turn to discipline of the military type.

Society

To harmonize the One with the Many, this is indeed a difficu

To harmonize the One with the Many, this is indeed a difficult adjustment, perhaps the most difficult of all, and so important, withal, that nations have perished from their failure to achieve it.

Failure

The true humanist maintains a just balance between sympathy

The true humanist maintains a just balance between sympathy and selection.

Sympathy

The humanities need to be defended today against the encroac

The humanities need to be defended today against the encroachments of physical science, as they once needed to be against the encroachment of theology.

Science

For behind all imperialism is ultimately the imperialistic i

For behind all imperialism is ultimately the imperialistic individual, just as behind all peace is ultimately the peaceful individual.

Peace