Uploaded May 2022 | Updated September 2026, 1 day ago
How do we find solace in modern times? The internationally acclaimed Canadian author and historian Michael Ignatieff visited the John Adams Institute to discuss just that in his new, bestselling book: 'On Consolation' Finding Solace in Dark Times'. Ignatieff was the rector of the Central European University in Budapest, until he was forced to leave by Orban, and one-time leader of the opposition in the Canadian House of Commons.
Ignatieff ponders the search for consolation by several great figures in history, literature and art. Where is humanity supposed to find solace in our modern secular society? The priests and prophets who used to offer meaning have long since lost their prominent positions in secular societies. Solace today is offered by a wide range of life coaches, therapists and wilderness retreats. Ignatieff argues that we are losing something by treating suffering as an illness that can be cured. Perhaps suffering should be seen as simply a part of our human existence. At this John Adams event, Ignatieff will offer an in-depth examination of our modern quest for happiness in a secularized world.
Recorderd on 19 May, 2022
How do we find solace in modern times? The internationally acclaimed Canadian author and historian Michael Ignatieff visited the John Adams Institute to discuss just that in his new, bestselling book: 'On Consolation' Finding Solace in Dark Times'. Ignatieff was the rector of the Central European University in Budapest, until he was forced to leave by Orban, and one-time leader of the opposition in the Canadian House of Commons.
Ignatieff ponders the search for consolation by several great figures in history, literature and art. Where is humanity supposed to find solace in our modern secular society? The priests and prophets who used to offer meaning have long since lost their prominent positions in secular societies. Solace today is offered by a wide range of life coaches, therapists and wilderness retreats. Ignatieff argues that we are losing something by treating suffering as an illness that can be cured. Perhaps suffering should be seen as simply a part of our human existence. At this John Adams event, Ignatieff will offer an in-depth examination of our modern quest for happiness in a secularized world.
Recorderd on 19 May, 2022
