UDC 329.11(082)(049.3) Serbian Political Thought Manuscript received: 01.09.2015. No. 2/2015, Accepted for publishing: 06.10.2015. Year VII, Vol. 12 Book Review pp. 127-130 Dušan Dostanić1 Institute for Political Studiеs, Belgrade Against the Crisis of time: Portraits of conservative thinkers among the rare few dedicated to the publishing of conservative literature. In their catalogue, we can thus find re-issues of classical conservative texts (such as Spen- gler’s The Hour of Decision), but also books by prominent post-war conservative authors, including Caspar von Schrenck-Notzing, Hans-Dietrich Sander or Fried- rich Romig. On its beaten track, the publisher has already released two collections featuring profiles of famous conservatives. These are: Conservative Profile: Ideas and Praxis in Politics among Radetzky, Karl Kraus and Alois Mock, edited by Ulrich Zellenberg and Conser- vatism in Austria: Strands, Ideas, Daniel Führing (Hg.)1 Persons and Associations from the Gegen die Krise der Zeit: Kon- Beginning to the Present, co-edited servative Denker im Portrait by Ulrich Zellenberg and Rob- Ares Verlag, Graz, 2013, 280 p. ert Rill. Both volumes primarily examined conservatism in Aus- It is safe to say that the pub- tria, reviewing the ideas of major lishing house Ares from Graz is Austrian conservative thinkers, but also policies of the House of 1 Research associate [email protected] Habsburg, conservative parties 127 and associations. It was in these or “from Radetzky to Mock”, this footsteps that the volume: Against volume captures only 20th cen- the Crisis of Time: Portraits of tury conservatives, both pre- and Conservative Thinkers, edited by post-war. The third difference Daniel Führing, was delivered. from the previous collections However, this collection is also pertains to the selection of the different from its precedents. First, authors featured. While previous it is no longer only about Aus- collections included politicians, trian conservatives, or even solely officers, artists or clerics who of- about European authors. We can ten did not have much to do with find essays on Plinio Corrêa de politics, nor did they participate Oliveira, Nicolás Gómez Dávila, in the framing of conservative Ivan Ilyin, Russell Kirk, Aleksandr thought, we now see persons who, Solzhenitsyn, Michael Oakeshott, to varying degrees, are all distinct Julius Evola... and thus, the book political thinkers. also takes into account British, As the editor points out, in the Russian and Latin American tra- selection of contributors special ditions of conservatism. Among attention was paid to their strong the Austrians profiled are Jo- knowledge of the subject, or ideas hannes Messner, Hans Sedlmayr, of the author they portrayed, as Gerd-Klaus Kaltenbrunner and well as their empathy for the topic, Othmar Spann in separate essays, as opposed to simply paraphras- while Erika Voegelin’s thought ing another person’s ideas. In this is reviewed together with Leo respect, it is fair to say that this is Strauss’in the same text. If we add a book on conservatives written essays on Arnold Gehlen, Ernst by conservatives or at least au- Jünger, Günther Maschke, Arthur thors who are pro-conservative. Moeller van den Bruck, Edgar Hence the authors, apart from the Julius Jung, Günther Rohrmoser, afore-mentioned Zellenberg, also Wilhelm Röpke, Carl Schmitt and include Sebastian Maass, Hanns Robert Spaemann, we can note Pichler, Michael Wladyka, Dirk that German-speaking conserva- Budde and others. tives remain overwhelmingly fea- tured. The second point that sets In his editorial, Daniel Füh- this collection apart from the pre- ring, makes reference to difficul- vious ones its time scope. More ties experienced in determining specifically, while the earlier two conservatism and the conserva- collections referred to the time tive position and in this context, from the “beginning” of conser- he underscores the supervicial vatism in Austria ”to the present“, spirit of our era which, with very 128 few exceptions, prevails among of the conservative revolution, the academia and the public. Also, which seeks to „create things that the editor does not disguise his in- are worth preserving“ as Arthur tention that this collection should Moeller van den Bruck put it, than attempt to rehabilitate conserva- in conservatism that advocates for tive thinking. He argues that the the status quo and yearns for by- present era is not only unfavour- gone times. able for conservatives, but we are Criticism that the modern witnessing the intentional dis- age is out of touch with real- creditation of the classical and ity, in Führing’s opinion, implies Christian traditions, or cultiva- the question about the essence tion of prejudice against conser- of man. In the definition of con- vatism. The term “conservatism“ servatism, the editor raises the given in the introduction is rather anthropological question, stating broadly defined. The editor chose that the conservative worldview to do so in order to include differ- regards man as a whole, without ent representatives of the conser- reducing him to some specific vative world view, while accept- aspects. Hence, for conservatives, ing the historical tensions among man is not only a material, biolog- the authors featured. Therefore, ical or political being, but above in this volume we can find such all homo religiosus. Beyond that, diametrically different authors as conservative anthropology views Russell Kirk and Julius Evola, Mi- man based on the anti-individu- chael Oakeshott and Ernst Jünger, alistic principle, as a community Wilhelm Röpke and Ivan Ilyin. being. In other words, man, with all his characterstics, is always The definition of the term viewed from the conservative per- „conservatism“ assumes that this spective as part of the larger body is a school of thought emerging at of community, family, nation... the time of the the French Revo- Also, conservativist anthropologi- lution as a reaction to the ratio- cal realism will perceive man as nalist, unhistorical and anti-life an imperfect, defficient and weak philosophy of enlightenment in being that is evil-prone. On this all its variations. For two hun- issue, conservatism has always dred years now, conservatives stood in opposition to all egali- have been fighting with the hu- tarian ideas on human equality. bris of the modern man and his Another important point of con- chronic lack of touch with reality. servative anthropology is the be- It is clear that the editor is more lief in human inequality. Contrary interested in conservative think- to the opinion that regards con- ing associated with the tradition 129 servatism solely as an inert and profiles of authors, since essays unreflexive insistence on keeping hardly exceed twenty pages. Thus things as they are and refusal of the reader who is already familiar any change, Führing thinks that with the subject, will hardly find conservatism is inseparable from any new or unknown informa- the perception of life as a strug- tion. But, this was not after all gle which may not necessarily pay the intention of the editor, who off in the earthly life. With regard attempted to provide a survey of to the first characteristic of con- the 20th century conservatism, servative anthropology that man to introduce some neglected and is homo religiosus, conservatives forgotten authors to the public, to struggle is not aimed at trivia, but stimulate reflection and prompt at eternal values such as family, further reading, rather than elab- nation and God. orate individual ideas. In this way, Führing artfully by- passes the formalist perception of conservatism that any insistence on preserving a given state of af- fairs is conservative, or the debate whether conservatism implies the wish for return to the (better) past, as well as getting involved in outlining every single conserva- tive canon and theme. Instead, with conservative anthropology in the foreground, it is possible to accept as conservative different vi- sions of order framed on the same anthropological premises. Given this broadly formulated definition of the conservative po- sition, the editor emphasizes that all authors included in this col- lection have not lost any of their relevance even today. The authors portrayed should remind us of the traditional foundations of a sound order. However, the collection cannot be said to provide very detailed 130.