Since ancient times, man has asked, "what is true about the world? What is good? What is evil? Does God exist? What are man's obligations to God? What are man's obligations to society?" These and other questions, and the answers that men have written constitute what has been called The Great Discussion. A formal study of these questions is part of a study of philosophy, but it is only in the last few decades that the study of philosophy has been restricted to "experts." In the past, knowledge of the Great Discussion was considered a vital part of every civilized person's basic education.
We think it is still a crucial part of education. Reading the classics will give us a perspective that is broader than the merely contemporary. Every age has its own outlook, talent at seeing certain truths—and proneness to certain mistakes. As C. S. Lewis wrote,
"...we all, therefore, need the books that will correct the characteristic mistakes of own period. And that means the old books...The only palliative is to keep the clean sea breeze of the centuries blowing through our minds, and this can be done only by reading old books. Not, of course, that there is any magic about the past. People were no cleverer than they are now; they made as many mistakes as we. But not the same mistakes."
His concluding advice?
"It is a good rule, after reading a new book, never to allow yourself another one till you have read an old one in between. If that is too much for you, you should at least read one old one to every three new ones."
Students should read the ideas of great authors and thinkers for themselves, rather than just textbooks which sift the ideas through another person's view. But they should do this in light of God's word, evaluating the words of human authors by the Word of truth. The books in this section often include more mature content, and are usually at a more difficult reading level. To stretch your level of reading and wrap your mind around new—or old!—ideas, this is the place to start!
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