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PhilosophyOn Heroes, Hero-Worship, and the Heroic in HistoryThomas CarlyleOn Heroes, Hero-Worship, and the Heroic in History

On Heroes, Hero-Worship, and the Heroic in History

Thomas Carlyle

PhilosophyEnglish
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In six lectures, Thomas Carlyle argues that history is shaped by great men and that admiring them, 'hero-worship', is a deep human need. He moves from the…

Catalogue details

Author
Thomas Carlyle
Category
Philosophy
Language
English
Source
Project Gutenberg

About this book

In six lectures, Thomas Carlyle argues that history is shaped by great men and that admiring them, 'hero-worship', is a deep human need. He moves from the hero as divinity, the Norse god Odin, to the hero as prophet, the Prophet Muhammad, whom he defends against the prejudices of European writers as a sincere man and a great soul; then the hero as poet, Dante and Shakespeare; as priest, Luther and Knox; as man of letters, Johnson, Rousseau and Burns; and as king, Cromwell and Napoleon.

Context and significance

Carlyle gave the lectures in London in 1840 and published them in 1841. His lecture on Muhammad, unusual for its respect for Islam in the Europe of his time, was widely discussed and has often been translated into Arabic. Read Carlyle's The French Revolution and Sartor Resartus.

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