The Grammar of Our Civility: Classical Education in America

by Lee T. Pearcy

The pragmatic demands of American life have made higher education's sustained study of ancient Greece and Rome an irrelevant luxury―and this despite the fact that American democracy depends so heavily on classical language, literature, and political theory. In The Grammar of Our Civility , Lee T. Pearcy chronicles how this came to be. Pearcy argues that classics never developed a distinctly American way of responding to distinctly American social conditions. Instead, American classical education simply imitated European models that were designed to underwrite European culture. The Grammar of Our Civility also offers a concrete proposal for the role of classical education, one that takes into account practical expectations for higher education in twenty-first century America.

Genres: Education

200 pages, Paperback

First published August 17, 2005

Reviews

[Heather · Rating 2 out of 5]

Presents a vision of classical education based on American pragmatism and that eschews any concept of absolutes. Which, in my opinion, makes both the proposed study and this book a waste of time. Besides the content, Pearcy's supposedly "accessible" style is dense, filled with his own redefinitions of words that the reader must constantly recall, and smattered with German terms and names liberally, especially in the first chapters. Its early portions do give an interesting history of classics and classical education in America, but even this is a tough read for one unfamiliar with German philosophers. A sample to sum up:

"This American dialogue will not aim at discovery of objective truth and unchanging perfection. Instead, it will seek to reveal alternative possibilities and manifold ways of being human . . ."

[CJ Forrest · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great for the historical value and relevance on the subject of classical education and the Trivium. There were quite a few new things I learned as well. It even discusses the elitist nature that often gets associated with the liberal arts. I did reduce a star since it's a bit difficult to read in some places. If you're not super interested in the subject, you'll find it hard to stay with it but I definitely recommend for those interested in the classical liberal arts.