For me it would have to be Revolt Against the Modern World by Julius Evola. No matter where you are in life, no matter how sure you are of your beliefs, this book will at least cause you some mental conflict. I'm sure by now many of you will have either heard of it, or read it, but it's essentially the anti modernist manifesto. Evola makes great arguments for hierarchy, against secularism, against female liberation, and essentially a return to older more Pagan values. The book is very critical of Christianity, but Evola argues his points persuasively, with many of his arguments being hard to deny. The book certainly hasn't made me a Pagan, but it's certainly made me think, so I'd highly recommend it.
What book would you choose?
St. Augustine's City of God, for most of the same reasons you outlined, just from the opposite perspective. I see the Augustinian approach to issues of evil, human nature, governance, and relationships coming back in vogue in the next few decades.
There will be a revival, brother.
Sounds good. Will give it a try.
The bible. The only reason I say this has not so much to do with God and spirituality, but with the truths present in the book itself and how obvious they are once you get into it. It's not a book that tells you rules to live by and forces you into unhappiness, it's a book that ultimately shows you all the mistakes people for thousands of years have made, how to avoid them, and how to live a "safe" life. Think of things like learn, work hard, save money, and surround yourself with good people. That's not there to oppress you, it's good advice.
There's also a lot of the issues there that we're going through today because history tends to repeat. If people were more in tune with that, a lot of messed up things wouldn't be today. Most people are just ignorant, and that's all people need to rule and oppress the masses.
I'm sorry to be that person but the book is called Nineteen Eighty-Four.
The film is called 1984.
Feel like such a twat doing that but I feel for some reason that I can't put my finger on that it matters.
Yes I would recommend that, definitely, I'm not really a reader and that one I've read at least ten times, not recently though for some reason.
This is the only acceptable answer.
George Orwell"s Animal Farm and 1984 bundle.
I tried reading 1984 before I was into politics, but I gave up after a few chapters. I've seen the movie since, but I really need to try reading it again.
Read it in middle school for an assignment. Awful read. Literally no dialogue till chapter 5, and the text was so dense that a few pages didn't have a single paragraph break.
However, it keeps coming to mind. I finished it in the late 00s, then watched it slowly become a reality. The Internet has gotten all of us desensitized to mass surveillance, and we are currently entering the endless present in which the party is always right. At this trajectory, the 2 minutes hate, the outlawing of caffeine, and the meticulously structured society will be real by 2030.
1984, for me, holds the odd position of being a terrible read that I'd recommend to anyone.
Industrial Society and it's Future, by Ted Kacyzinski. It is a short critique of the political and social consequences of adopting advanced technology into our society. A little newer than the other suggestions I see here as it was written in 1996, but it is still extremely relevant to today's circumstances. It's not copyrighted so you can actually read free copies online.
Edited to add link for anyone who wants to read
http://besser.tsoa.nyu.edu/howard/Anarchism/Unabom/manifesto2.html
Reading and comprehending are two different things, so I doubt it would actually change things all that much. Normies gonna normie.
That said, I'd append The Metaphysics of War as a second entry in the Evola list you started. It does a good job of breaking the taboo that war is some universal evil that is wholly undesirable or without benefit. It is only through hardship that we can become strong.
It's not a book, but...
The Future - if there is one - Is Female
Nothing is certain in life but death, taxes, and TheImpossible's thot patrol.
Starship Troopers. It may sound odd to some, but that was the one that started my long journey to rejecting leftism/liberalism, and actually trying to think for myself.
For similar reasons I'd suggest The Moon is a Harsh Mistress. Heinlein was a great man.
Black Rednecks and White Liberals by Thomas Sowell is a definite must-read. So is his Basic Economics.
I would choose "Rules For Radicals", or maybe "The Prince". Either for similar reasons: While it would give some uneducated bad people some ideas, it would also give the apathetic middle some knowledge about what is being used against them.
My mind jumps to Haidt.
The Righteous Mind, or The Coddling of the American Mind.
The Righteous Mind would help Conservatives understand why leftist thought is so simplistic and emotional. (And maybe how to appeal to them.) And help liberals understand that conservatives aren't just evil, and that there are aspects to conservatives' decisions that liberals aren't considering.
The Coddling of the American Mind would hopefully wake idiots up to the self destructive mistakes our society is making so we that we can reverse course and hopefully become a stronger people in the future.
Animal Farm by Orwell and Discrimination and Disparities by Thomas Sowell.
I've mixed feelings about Thomas Sowell. I read some of Black Red Necks & White Liberals. His theory about American Americans getting some of their behavior from Celtic groups in the South was interesting, but I don't think he dealt with the fact that the Celtic groups moved passed that behavior while the AA's didn't. His section on the "good immigrants" which talks of successful groups of immigrants was full of Jewish apologetics.
Fair enough, but I mentioned that book because of the annoying trend that says if person A is more successful than person B than racism/sexism/privilege/etc is the cause. As a black person Ive pulled my hair out in frustration trying to explain that if you are failing then it is best to start with yourself for reasons why.
The war against self-responsibility is the most destructive war that's ever been fought
It's very depressing to realise that no matter how much responsibility you take for yourself and your behavior, people who refuse to do the same will always comprise a significant and frequently overpowering voting block.
If you're interested, a good chunk of Allbion's Seed by David Hackett Fischer is dedicated to the idea. For a lighter treatment, try Colin Woodward's American Nations.
Stop shilling your own books, Julius! I see you!
Lord of the Flies, for a look into the future.
Any of Hitchens' work, e.g. The Trial of Henry Kissinger. Ideological impressions may fail, but the exquisite penmanship and objectively great writing will be instilled into majority of the reader base.
Atlas Shrugged.
FA Hayeks Road to Serfdom is a prescient and cutting critique of socialism, I think almost every generation can apply it to their own time. Builds well on arguments he made in The Fatal Conceit, which was a lengthy takedown of centrally planned economies, the arrogance of experts, and the human inability to fathom or control complex systems.
The Gulag Archipelago