Part 15/18:
A recurring theme is the loss of faith in traditional authority figures—church leaders, aristocrats, wise elders—and the rise of nihilism. The author critiques the modern obsession with denying or replacing divine and moral authority, replacing it with abstract ideals or superficial social contracts. They reference Nietzsche’s Age of the Last Men, describing a society that glorifies weakness, mediocrity, and conformity, and predicts its collapse to be inevitable.
They argue that without roots in history, religion, or tradition, societies become fragile, chaotic, and ultimately self-destructive. The tendency to deny fundamental human nature—our drive for purpose, mastery, and meaning—results in widespread existential despair and social disintegration.