The Compleat Gentleman

Fidelity, prowess, courtesy, generosity, austerity, and honor. No, these aren't horses running in the Kentucky Derby--they're the qualities that author Brad Miner believes must be revived in order to correct civilized man's downward moral descent. Miner, a former editor for THE NATIONAL REVIEW, traces the origins of chivalry and concludes that our tribal success is guaranteed by those who embody the trifecta of the gentleman--to be part warrior, lover, and monk. The production is wonderfully narrated by Christopher Lane. You'll find yourself pausing the player to consider some of the ideas and quotes. As an unintended bonus, Miner provides a reality check for DA VINCI CODE fans with a history of the Knights Templar. R.W.S. (c) AudioFile 2005, Portland, Maine

January 26, 2004
According to Miner, an executive editor at Bookspan, former literary editor of National Review
and author of The Concise Conservative Encyclopedia
, a true gentleman is a master of the art of sprezzatura
. The term, as used by the Renaissance writer Castiglione, refers to a way of life characterized by discretion and decorum, nonchalance and gracefulness—or, as Miner defines it, the cool exemplified by the men in first class on the Titanic
who went bravely to their deaths in evening clothes. Underneath this unflappable quality, which says is not determined by birth or class, resides a man who is at once a warrior (a readiness to face battle for a just cause), lover (he lets a woman be what she wants to be) and monk (a man possessing true knowledge). In erudite and witty prose, Miner explores these three facets of his concept of the gentleman through an engaging survey of knighthood, warfare and courtship, "compleat" with the title's archaic spelling. Beyond a liberal sprinkling of quotes from the likes of G.K. Chesterton and Edmund Burke, the author provides a learned romp through the worlds of Eleanor of Aquitaine, the Cathars (a medieval heretical sect) and Benedictine monasticism. Miner's theories are consistently entertaining, and seem pitched toward a defense of his conservative view of contemporary politics, including his endorsement (in the book) of the Iraq war. In fact, Miner believes that a pacifist can be a gentleman only if he is also a saint, and, in gentlemanlike fashion, he acknowledges his guilt about his C.O. status during the Vietnam War. BOMC alternate
.