The self is closely identified with inner psychological thoughts and feelings (hence, trans ideology has become so plausible), and personhood is equated with self-consciousness (hence, babies in the womb and people suffering with dementia are increasingly thought of in nonpersonal ways and thus as not possessing rights). What is the modern secular view of self and personhood? The roots are deep, and we are all at some level complicit, so easy fixes-electing the right president, appointing the right judge-are not going to change the situation in substantial ways. I hope that it clarifies for readers the origins and depths of the revolution in the notion of selfhood that underlies the dramatic changes in Western culture over the last fifty years.
What do you hope this book will accomplish?
As I prepared for that book, it became clear to me that a more interesting and helpful volume might be one that applied Rieff’s thinking to our current context, specifically with reference to the LGBTQ+ movement’s transformation of Western culture. The origins lie in the suggestion by my friends Rod Dreher, the journalist, and Justin Taylor at Crossway that I write an introduction to the thought of Philip Rieff. What led you to write the book The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self?
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