The Great Conversation

This is a very good hardcover. Britannica Great Books SeriesVolume One 1952 Printing. This volume is very good inside and out. The inside pages are actually still crisp and clean with no markings seen. The binding is tight and straight. Gray hardcover boards feature gold lettering along spine and are very good with only light shelf wear mostly corners/edges. Medium octavo book size or 6.5" x 9.5". 131 pages.

Great Books of the Western World by Encyclopedia Britannica was originally published in 1952 as a 54 volume set. The idea of the series was to present great books of the western world that were relevant to contemporary matters with important historical content. They were intended to be part of a conversation about great ideas and literature. They were re-issued in 1990 in a 60 volume set with some titles added and some titles left out. The idea for the series began at the University of Chicago where a course was developed with the idea of a round table approach for reading and discussing great books. The purpose was to fill the gaps in education and afford a well-rounded intellect familiar with the great works of the Western Canon along with great ideas.

Initial reception was poor but the first sets were gifted to Queen Elizabeth ll of England and President Harry Truman. Time magazine did a piece on the set featuring Mortimer J. Adler, Editor in Chief, who was integral to the university course and the subsequent set of books. Soon, the popularity of the series soared. The series features works from ancient classics to modern masterpieces.

This volume was Volume One of the Britannica series. The Great Conversation, The Substance of a Liberal Education by Robert M. Hutchins. The preface of the volume speaks to the history and purpose of the set. Chapters include; The Tradition of the West, Modern Times, Education and Economics, Education for All, East and West, Approaches to The Set and more. It is the guide and explanation of the series.

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