Civilization

Originally published in 1928, this timeless essay interrogates the meaning of civilization in the aftermath of the Great War.

During the First World War, Britain took up arms to “fight for civilization.” Once it was over, Clive Bell dared to inquire about the lofty abstraction that was worth such a sacrifice in blood and treasure. In Civilization, Bell provocatively—and persuasively—suggests that this grand human institution is rooted not in the dignity of all people, but rather in the existence of a leisure class.

With deep insight and cutting wit, Bell dissects the platitudes and pretensions of Western society. An influential art critic and key member of the Bloomsbury Group, he dedicated this classic work to his friend Virginia Woolf.