A Life in Letters

Various sources are reporting Sir Roger Scruton has died, age 75. He was a latter-day renaissance man - a philosopher, composer, conservative activist, and man of letters. Steven Hayward of Power Line writes an appreciation of Scruton’s life and impact.

I’d share with you two Scruton quotes from Hayward’s obit, with a needed (I believe) explanation for the second.

A writer who says that there are no truths, or that all truth is ‘merely relative,’ is asking you not to believe him. So don’t.

Conservatism may rarely announce itself in maxims, formulae, or aims. Its essence is inarticulate, and its expression, when compelled, skeptical.

Hayward explains why conservatism can be “inarticulate.”

The conservative faces the tougher challenge of understanding and explaining the often subtle reasons why existing institutions, no matter how imperfect, work better than speculative alternatives.

Another way of saying this is that, despite liberal claims, there are few-to-no simple solutions to complex problems.