Mortimer Adler - A Transformational Marxist

Mortimer Adler is known by many as the author of "How to Read a Book" (1940) which he coauthored with Charles Van Doren. It is considered the classic guide to intelligent reading. I have read the book recently and was recommending it as helpful preparation for home based college studies. My reasons, and the reasons other Biblical minded people recommend this book is based on its practical ideas for getting the most information and learning out of a book. "How to Read a Book" also includes a list of the classic works considered the foundation of western civilizations, which is helpful to the Christian toward understanding our times.

Last Friday, Dean Gotcher (AuthorityResearch.com) and his wife Karen were having supper at our home when I mention this as a book that I found helpful. Dean then pointed out that Mortimer Alder is a Transformational Marxist, which I later learned is a "slow march through the institutions" as a strategy for changing the world, popularized by Marxist Antonio Gramsi.

Dean also pointed out that Mortimer Adler founded the Aspen Institute

According to the Apen Institute website: Paepcke created what is now the Aspen Institute. He was a trustee of the University of Chicago, and his participation in its Great Books seminar, led by philosopher Mortimer Adler, inspired the Institute's Executive Seminar. The seminar is a forum based on the writings of great thinkers of the past and present. Through reading and discussing selections from the works of classic and modern writers, leaders better understand the human challenges facing the organizations and communities they serve. "The Executive Seminar was not intended to make a corporate treasurer a more skilled corporate treasurer," said Paepcke, "but to help a leader gain access to his or her own humanity by becoming more self-aware, more self-correcting, and more self-fulfilling."

Understanding the history of western civilization does give people the tools to help transform society, toward their preferred worldview. Mortimer Adler apparently viewed having a Great Books understanding of western civilization as important for slowly implementing Marxism. Many Christians today see some of that same historical body of knowledge as valuable for Biblically discerning the times clearly enough to implement Biblical truths where errors have dominated.

I therefore see a need for someone, perhaps a home school or home college student interested in writing and worldview issues, to analyze "How to Read a Book" to discover and list any of its Marxist features and redeem the value of the book by taking its thoughts captive to the obedience of Christ.

Here is the entire book free online: How to Read a Book