Talk of the Town

A Short History Of Progress

Thu. Nov. 25, 7:30 - 9:00 pm

With: Ronald Wright 2004 Massey lecturer and author

The Massey Lectures are co-sponsored by CBC Radio (http://www.cbc.ca/ideas/massey.html), House of Anansi Press (http://www.anansi.ca/titles.cfm?pub_id=231), and Massey College at the University of Toronto. The 2004 lectures by the writer and historian, Ronald Wright, will air on the program Ideas Nov. 22-26. His subject is: A Short History of Progress. As Wright notes in his book based on the lectures, the idea of material progress is a relatively recent one, significant only in the last three hundred years or so. And somehow in the modern mind, the concept of progress has come to mean a continual and almost inexorable improvement in our technological and material world. But Wright argues that we must get beyond our blind faith that progress will solve all the world’s ills:

"We no longer give much thought to moral progress -- a prime concern of earlier times -- except to assume that it goes hand in hand with material progress....The myth of progress has sometimes served us well -- those of us seated at the best tables, anyway -- and may continue to do so. But I shall argue in this book that it has also become dangerous. Progress has an internal logic that can lead beyond reason to catastrophe. A seductive trail of successes may end in a trap."

And Wright is adamant that the challenge of examining our successes and failures throughout history is of critical importance:

“Our civilization, which subsumes most of its predecessors, is a great ship steaming at speed into the future. It travels faster, further, and more laden than any before. We may not be able to foresee every reef and hazard, but by reading her compass bearing and headway, by understanding her design, her safety record, and the abilities of her crew, we can, I think, plot a wise course between the narrows and the bergs looming ahead.

And I believe we must do this without delay, because there are too many shipwrecks behind us. The vessel we are now aboard is not merely the biggest of all time; it is also the only one left. The future of everything we have accomplished since our intelligence evolved will depend on the wisdom of our actions over the next few years. Like all creatures, humans have made their way in the world so far by trial and error; unlike other creatures, we have a presence so colossal that error is a luxury we can no longer afford. The world has grown too small to forgive us any big mistakes.”

Join us at Talk of the Town for a probing look at the idea of progress with Ronald Wright.

The discussion will take place at UBC Robson Square. Attendance is free of charge, but please pre-register at info.talkofthetown@ubc.ca or phone 604-822-5675.

Biography

Ronald Wright is a novelist, historian, and essayist. He has won awards in all three genres, and is published in ten languages. Before becoming a writer, he studied archaeology at Cambridge University and the University of Calgary, which awarded him an honorary doctorate in 1996. His nonfiction books include the bestsellers Time Among the Maya and Stolen Continents, a history of the Americas that was chosen a book of the year by the Independent and the Sunday Times. His first novel, A Scientific Romance, won Britain’s David Higham Prize and was chosen a book of the year by the Globe and Mail, the Sunday Times, and the New York Times. His latest book is the novel Henderson’s Spear.

Bibliography

A Short History of Progress, Ronald Wright, Anansi, 2004
Henderson’s Spear, Ronald Wright, Vintage, 2002
A Scientific Romance, Ronald Wright, Vintage, 1998
Stolen Continents, Ronald Wright, Viking, 2001
Home and Away, Ronald Wright, Knopf 1993
Cut Stones and Crossroads, Ronald Wright, Viking, 1984
Time Among the Maya, Ronald Wright, Weidenfeld & Nicholson, 1989

Links & Readings

Links

CBC Radio (Ideas)

CBC is a co-sponsor and host broadcaster of the Massey Lectures.

House of Anansi Press

House of Anansi is the publisher of A Short History of Progress.

The Idea of Progress: An Inquiry into its Origin and Growth

You can read J.B. Bury’s classic book online at this site.

The Idea of Progress

A bibliographic essay on the idea of progress by Robert A. Nisbet is available at this site.

Readings

The Idea of Progress: History and Society, Sidney Pollard, C.A. Watts, 1968.