GROWTH AND DECAY OF CIVILIZATION

Southland Times, Issue 24830, 24 August 1942, Page 6

GROWTH AND DECAY OF CIVILIZATION

WINTER SEASON OF ARTS Conflicting philosophies about the future of world civilization were discussed by Dr A. H. McLintock, lecturer in history at Otago University, in an address to the Music Section of the University Association of Southland on Saturday night. The title of the address was •‘Civilization and the Future of the Arts.”

Most thoughtful persons were inclined to stop a moment and take stock of the situation in this time of chaos, said Dr Mclntock, and consider whether our civilization was approaching its end. Man had lived on the earth only a small proportion of the period of the world’s existence. Could man learn anything from the history of the past which would tell him about the future, he asked. The difficulty was that man could comprehend only very little of the 6000 years of his civilization. Even if he had all that knowledge he could not foretell how man would react to the conditions to come. The military leaders of the past had admitted that many of the great victories had come from something outside the control of man. Historians who were hybrids of scientists and artists—scientists in their search for accuracy, and artists in the presentation of their facts—disclosed the most conflicting views of the past and the future. The old historians and philosophers had been preoccupied with the golden age in the past, but in the eighteenth century they had turned their backs on such ideas and had spoken of the golden age to come and the perfectibility of man. They were convinced of the grand time to come and of the doctrine of progress. Latterly, there had been a change of opinion and Dean Inge had expressed the view that neither science nor experience gave warrant for belief in progress. In the physical world there was no sign of development. In the affairs of the mind the position was the same. With all the facilities of education there was no greater crops of geniuses. Modem standards of culture were low in spite of the fact that the people were said to be educated. GREAT COMPOSERS OF PAST There would be many people who would be prepared to argue that Beethoven and Mozart were greater composers than Wagner and Brahms; perhaps that Bach and Handel were greater than any others; or that the Gregorian chant was the finest expression of music. The whole trouble was that people confused complexity with progress. Spengler’s view of civilization was that there could be discerned in history the rise and decline of a number of cultures whose growth and inevitable decay were governed by unalterable destiny. The future of the west, he contended, was not a limitless tending upwards and onwards. He believed that the arts of the west were dead. Dr McLintock said there was some basis for the belief that civilization had passed its zenith and the arts were passing into their winter season. However, there was much beauty in all seasons; as much beauty in winter as in spring, or in night as in day, and it was the duty of everyone to derive the most he could from the rather wintry art of modern times.

Against the determinism of Spengler,’however, were the views of other philosophers who believed that civilizations had been arrested by force of human personalities; that human society was ever confronted with a challenge and it depended on the nature of the society whether it could resist that challenge. Professor C. E. Joad claimed that art faltered when over the minds of man was the menace of a great fear. The study of history showed, however, that very seldom had the creative artist had a quiet background and great artists of the past had flourished in times of tumult. If the creative artist had an idea to express he would express it even if Nazi bombs were about to fall, otherwise his idea was not worth anything. In conclusion, Mr McLintock said that even if our arts were passing through their winter it should be remembered that spring followed winter and all should take heart and watch for the emergence of a new era. Dr McLintock and Mr Charles Martin played as pianoforte duets a theme and variations by Schubert and the waltzes from “Der Rosenkavalier” (Strauss). Mr H. W. Slater moved a vote of thanks to the speaker.