Brian Jones on "Is the Enlightenment Working? Considerations from Tocqueville" (Colloquium Talk)

Talking Thomism

Brian Jones (Ph.D. Candidate at the Center for Thomistic Studies) presents his paper "Is the Enlightenment Working? Considerations from Alexis de Tocqueville." In light of recent defenses (e.g. Steven Pinker's "Enlightenment Now!", Jonah Goldberg's "Suicide of the West") and critiques (Patrick Deneen's "Why Liberalism Failed") of enlightenment liberalism, Mr. Jones argues the ultimate fruit of enlightenement liberalism has been the atomization society, leading to a sense of isolation and meaninglessness. Mr. Jones has been published in New Blackfriars, Crisis, Catholic World Report, HPR, and Catholic Social Science Review. This talk was given at the Center for Thomistic Studies on May 4, 2018. The Center for Thomistic Studies, located at the University of St. Thomas in Houston, TX, is the only graduate program in the United States uniquely dedicated to the thought of St. Thomas Aquinas. More information about the Center can be found on our website at http://stthom.edu/CTS. For news and updates about future events, like our Facebook page: http://facebook.com/thomisticstudies Producer: John H. Boyer Announcer: Peter Gardner Intro and outro music: Clare Jensen, "Cello Suite No. 1: Prelude" by J.S. Bach.