In the second last episode focusing on The Abolition of Man, C.S. Lewis explains how stepping outside of the Tao results in the abolition of man. With a particular focus on technology and the illusion of power that it gives us, Difff & James unpack the first half of the culminating chapter of this important book.

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Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoon
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In the second half of the second chapter of The Abolition of Man, C.S. Lewis asks whether those value reformers who want to reject The Tao can use instinct as a first principal - a primary foundation upon which to construct any semblance of value. This, however, ultimately results in an infinite regress of first instinct that fails to satisfy the prerequisites.

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Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoon
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In this bonus episode, Difff interviews Kon Bouzikos, the President of The Australian Classical Education Society. Kon speaks about his passion for Classical Education, and the mission of the ACES.

Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.

Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoon
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"The practical result of education in the spirit of The Green Book must be the destruction of the society which accepts it." These are the opening words of the second chapter of C.S. Lewis' The Abolition of Man, and it is a big claim that the remainder of the book sets out to defend. 

In this episode which deals with the first half of chapter two, called 'The Tao', Difff and James unpack the question of from where we might derive foundational values. The suggestion that rationality may provide an answer brings up a classical dilemma - whether humanity can derive an 'ought' from an 'is'.

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Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoon
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Continuing the miniseries on The Abolition of Man, this episode concludes the discussion of the first chapter of the book, by leading into an explanation of what Lewis calls the Tao - the recognition that there is objective value in the world. The chapter concludes by commenting on the parodic tragicomedy wherein we laugh at honour and are shocked to find traitors in our midst, the exact situation that an education that ignores the reality of the Tao will automatically create.

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Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoon
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In part two of the mini-series on C.S. Lewis' The Abolition of Man, Difff and James discuss what it means to teach objective value, and how even the attempt to teach from a purely subjectivist approach cannot escape the fact that there is no value-neutral education. 

All education is formational, and as Lewis quotes Aristotle: "the aim of education is to make the pupil like and dislike what he ought." This is the concept of ordo amoris, a vital piece to the foundation of Classical Education.

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Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoon
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In the first in a series of episodes looking at C.S. Lewis' The Abolition of Man, we read about the (possibly) unintended impacts that can smuggle their way into a classroom. These hidden philosophical and anthropological positions end up shaping young people to see the world a certain way. Lewis argues for the existence of objective value in the world, with the necessary correlative being that sometimes, our feelings might be wrong.

If you're interested in education and have never read The Abolition of Man, drop everything and have a read.

Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.

Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoon
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Having looked briefly at the history and curriculum of Classical Education, this episode discusses a broad overview of some of the main pedagogical principles of Classical Education, including: Make Haste Slowly, Much Not Many, Repetition is the Mother of Memory and the concept of Schole.

There are plenty of great resources online that go into these principles in more detail. One of the best is from Dr Christopher Perrin, and can be found here.

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Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoon
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Difff and James go into a broad overview of what we mean by the terms Classical and Liberal Arts Education. As a general historical overview we discuss the Seven Liberal Arts of Grammar, Logic, Rhetoric, Arithmetic, Geometry, Music & Astronomy, as well as the Great Books approach and a focus on the humanities of History, Literature, Philosophy and Theology.

Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.

Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoon
Creative Commons CC BY 4.0

James recounts his educational journey from being a capable yet apathetic student who did the bare minimum, to someone who loved learning and was excited about the good the true and the beautiful.  How did a teenage boy who thought school was just about getting a job, and passing was all that mattered, grow up to choose to do a seemingly 'useless' degree like a Bachelor of Liberal Arts?

Our focus on usefulness alone has come at the cost of Truth, Beauty and Goodness. But as John Henry Newman wrote, "though the useful is not always good, the good is always useful."

Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.

Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoon
Creative Commons CC BY 4.0