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Podcast: New Books in Western European Studies
Episode: Joseph T. Stuart, "Christopher Dawson: A Cultural Mind in the Age of the Great War" (Catholic U of America Press, 2022)
Description: Christopher Dawson (1889-1970) was a British historian who was deeply shaken by the Great War (1914-1918) and sought to explore the history of different cultures and religions to understand the catastrophe that had befallen the modern world. In doing so, Dawson would develop a “cultural mind” that served to guide his style of scholarship; it was interdisciplinary by nature (incorporating anthropology, sociology, history, and comparative religion). This ran contrary to the prevalent academic trend towards specialization that continues to this day. To explore the scholarly achievement of Christopher Dawson is the subject of Joseph T. Stuart’s Christopher Dawson: A Cultu...