“Oh, to be in England...”
On the contents and purpose of our special section on “Britain today.”
Potemkin vistas
by David Pryce-Jones
Britain Today: Part I
Do the moral and cultural values which sustained Britain during World War II still exist today? David Pryce-Jones looks at the outward indicators-”and the realities they disguise-”to answer this urgent question.
British intellectual life today
by Daniel Johnson
Britain Today: Part II
About a century ago, the term “man of letters” was in Britain replaced by “intellectual.” Daniel Johnson examines the difference between the two, and what that difference says about the state of the life of the (British) mind.
The real British disease
by John O'Sullivan
Britain Today: Part III
The British are experiencing a collective identity crisis. John O’Sullivan explains why, and why halting its progress is the surest way to protect Britain from decline.
The people vs. the E.U.
by Rodney Leach
Britain Today: Part IV
The recent referendums in France and Holland rejecting the proposed EU constitution are not a setback but the possible salvation of Europe. Rodney Leach explains why.
The end of virtuous Albion
by Theodore Dalrymple
Britain Today: Part V
On some British virtues, once commonplace, that are today increasingly hard to find.
Farewell, Church of England?
by Peter Mullen
Britain Today: Part VI
The Church of England is under assault-”and the enemies are within. Peter Mullen, Chaplain to the Stock Exchange, tells us why the “whole institution is like a psychotic kindergarten,” and what must be done about it.
Two concepts of the moral life
by Kenneth Minogue
Britain Today: Part VII
Kenneth Minogue explores the moral life, or lack thereof, of modern Britain, and how it differs from that of past generations.
Trafalgar then & now
by Andrew Roberts
Britain Today: Part VIII
How the English-speaking world is-”and isn’t-”celebrating Admiral Nelson’s famous victory.
Some Americans in London
by John Gross
Britain Today: Part IX
An amusing look at some of the unusual Americans who have called London home.
Straining for authenticity
by Mark Steyn
On the new trend of “stenodrama”-”plays written from interview and courtroom transcripts. It’s about authenticity: “If you can fake that, you’ve got it made.”
Cezanne & Pissarro: A crucial friendship
by Karen Wilkin
Karen Wilkin on “Pioneering Modern Painting: Cezanne & Pissarro 185-1885,” which opened at the Museum of Modern Art, New York, on June 26 and remains on view through September 12, 2005.
Exhibition notes
by Anthony Daniels
On “Joshua Reynolds: The Creation of Celebrity” at Tate Modern, London, from May 26 to September 18, 2005 and “Frida Kahlo” at Tate Modern, London, from June 9 to October 9, 2005.
Exhibition notes
by James Panero
On “Robert Smithson” at the Whitney Museum of American Art.
Iraq, Kosovo & other music
by Jay Nordlinger
On Thomas Ades's piano quintet, Peter Maxwell Davies's Naxos Quartet No. 3, two string quartets of Christos Hatzis, and David Del Tredici's Lament for the Death of a Bullfighter.
The Plame game
by James Bowman
On how to manufacture a scandal, media-style.
Dictionary Johnson
by Christopher Ricks
On The Yale Edition of the Works of Samuel Johnson: Vol. XVIII, Johnson on the English Language.
The foot-fall of J.L-M.
by John Russell
On James Lees-Milne's Ceaseless Turmoil: Diaries 1988-1992.
Less than zero
by John Derbyshire
On David Berlinski's Infinite Ascent: A Short History of Mathematics.
Attn: bin Laden
by Stefan Beck
On Chris Cleave's Incendiary.
An air raid siren for the Left
by Judy Stove
On Lilliput, the clever litle magazine that helped to see England through the Second World War.
Crazy in Cambodia
by David Chandler
On Keith Windschuttle's "The journalism of warfare" (June 2005).
Crazy in Cambodia
by Keith Windschuttle
A reply to David Chandler.