Background
Bruce Stacy Thornton was born on August 2, 1953 in Fresno, California, United States; the son of Glen S. Thornton, a cattle rancher and barber, and Grace G. Thornton, a cattle rancher.
University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, United States
Bruce Thornton received a Bachelor of Arts in Latin and a Doctor of Philosophy in Comparative Literature from the University of California, Los Angeles in 1975 and 1983 respectively.
(Eros: The Myth of Ancient Greek Sexuality is a controvers...)
Eros: The Myth of Ancient Greek Sexuality is a controversial book that lays bare the meanings Greeks gave to sex. Contrary to the romantic idealization of sex dominating our culture, the Greeks saw eros as a powerful force of nature, potentially dangerous and in need of control by society: Eros the Destroyer, not Cupid the Insipid, is what fired the Greek imagination. The destructiveness of eros can be seen in Greek imagery and metaphor, and in their attitudes toward women and homosexuals.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0813332265/?tag=2022091-20
1997
(In the classics departments of today's universities, Bruc...)
In the classics departments of today's universities, Bruce Thornton says, the Greeks are accused of stealing their achievements from black Egyptians, of oppressing their wives and daughters, and of hypocritically speculating about freedom while holding slaves. Most of all, classic Greek culture has come under attack precisely because its glorious achievement, extended into history, is what defines the West and makes it distinct. In Greek Ways, Thornton clears away these misconceptions.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1893554570/?tag=2022091-20
2000
(This dictionary of key terms and concepts provides the fu...)
This dictionary of key terms and concepts provides the fundamental historical, philosophical, and critical vocabulary necessary for a complete understanding of the humanities - the great works of art, literature, history, philosophy, and music of the Western tradition. Its clearly written definitions offer users background and introduction of ideas for what may have been previously unfamiliar terms.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0130166642/?tag=2022091-20
2000
(With humor, lucidity, and unflinching rigor, the acclaime...)
With humor, lucidity, and unflinching rigor, the acclaimed authors of Who Killed Homer? and Plagues of the Mind unsparingly document the degeneration of a central if beleaguered discipline - classics - and reveal the root causes of its decline. Hanson, Heath, and Thornton point to academics themselves - their careerist ambitions, incessant self-promotion, and overspecialized scholarship, among other things - as the progenitors of the crisis. They call for a return to academic populism, an approach characterized by accessible, unspecialized writing, selfless commitment to students and teaching, and respect for the legacy of freedom and democracy that the ancients bequeathed to the West.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1882926544/?tag=2022091-20
2001
(On a hot July dawn in 1853, a gunfight took place on the ...)
On a hot July dawn in 1853, a gunfight took place on the western edge of the San Joaquin Valley, midway between San Francisco and Los Angeles. When the smoke cleared, Joaquin Murrieta, one of the most notorious bandits of the Gold Rush lay dead. Soon his severed head was traveling around the new state of California in a pickling jar.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1893554562/?tag=2022091-20
2003
(Wages of Appeasement explores the reasons why a powerful ...)
Wages of Appeasement explores the reasons why a powerful state gives in to aggressors. It tells the story of three historical examples of appeasement: the greek city-states of the fourth century b.c., which lost their freedom to Philip II of Macedon; England in the twenties and thirties, and the failure to stop Germany's aggression that led to World War II; and America's current war against Islamic jihad and the 30-year failure to counter Iran's attacks on the United States.
https://www.amazon.com/Wages-Appeasement-Ancient-Athens-America-ebook/dp/B004OA64N4/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=The+Wages+of+Appeasement%3A+Ancient+Athens%2C+Munich%2C+and+Obama%E2%80%99s+America&qid=1593182694&s=books&sr=1-1
2011
(In Democracy's Dangers & Discontents, Bruce Thornton disc...)
In Democracy's Dangers & Discontents, Bruce Thornton discusses those criticisms first aired by ancient critics of Athenian democracy, then traces the historical process by which the Republic of the founders has evolved into something similar to ancient democracy, and finally argues for the relevance of those critiques to contemporary United States policy.
https://www.amazon.com/Democracys-Dangers-Discontents-Institution-Publication-ebook/dp/B00L77YT0C/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Democracy%27s+Dangers+and+Discontents%3A+The+Tyranny+of+the+Majority+From+the+Greeks+to+Obama&qid=1593182619&s=books&sr=1-1
2014
Bruce Stacy Thornton was born on August 2, 1953 in Fresno, California, United States; the son of Glen S. Thornton, a cattle rancher and barber, and Grace G. Thornton, a cattle rancher.
Bruce Thornton received a Bachelor of Arts in Latin and a Doctor of Philosophy in Comparative Literature from the University of California, Los Angeles in 1975 and 1983 respectively. He studied Greek, Latin, and English literature.
Bruce Stacy Thornton began his career in 1980 as a teaching associate in the Department of Comparative Literature of the University of California, Los Angeles. Three years later he was appointed as a lecturer at Reedley Community College. For four years Bruce was a lecturer at California State University, Fullerton. From 1989 to 1991 he served as an assistant professor of Classics and Humanities, later becoming an associate professor of Classics and Humanities. In 1996 Thornton was appointed as a professor of Classics and Humanities. Since 2000 he has held the position of a professor of Classics and Humanities at California State University, Fresno.
Bruce has lectured at many other colleges and universities, such as the Smithsonian Institute, the Intercollegiate Studies Institute, the Army War College, and the Air Force Academy. Besides, he has appeared on the History Channel and ABC's Politically Incorrect.
Bruce Thornton is also the author of several books, including Greek Ways: How the Greeks Created Western Civilization, Searching for Joaquin: Myth, Murieta, and History in California, Bonfire of the Humanities: Rescuing the Classics in an Impoverished Age and Decline and Fall: Europe's Slow-Motion Suicide. His most recent book is Democracy's Dangers and Discontents: The Tyranny of the Majority From the Greeks to Obama. It was published in 2014. His numerous essays and reviews have appeared in scholarly journals and magazines such as the New Criterion, Commentary, National Review, the Weekly Standard, and the Claremont Review of Books. Thornton is a regular contributor to online magazines such as City Journal and Advancing a Free Society.
(In Democracy's Dangers & Discontents, Bruce Thornton disc...)
2014(This dictionary of key terms and concepts provides the fu...)
2000(In the classics departments of today's universities, Bruc...)
2000(With humor, lucidity, and unflinching rigor, the acclaime...)
2001(On a hot July dawn in 1853, a gunfight took place on the ...)
2003(Eros: The Myth of Ancient Greek Sexuality is a controvers...)
1997(Wages of Appeasement explores the reasons why a powerful ...)
2011Thornton was a strong critic of the Obama administration.
Thornton described his opinions as opposed to the dominant, mainstream historical tradition about the Enlightenment. He also subscribes to the Athens versus Jerusalem thesis of Leo Strauss, in which the interplay between classical Greek ideologies of rationality and the Judaeo-Christian spiritual philosophies resulted in the creation of Western civilization.
Bruce also believes that the declining belief in interpersonal ideals such as national pride and in religious ideals such as Christianity has led non-American Westerners to either substitute "political religions" such as communism and fascism into their lives or abandon having moral ideals altogether. He believes this weakens them against pressure from threats such as increasing immigration to Europe by Muslims that have higher birth rates than native Europeans.
Quotations:
"Writing, for me, is primarily about pleasure: the pleasures of using language, playing with ideas, gathering knowledge, and speaking my piece."
"What Horace saw as the purpose of poetry, 'delight and instruction,' should be the purpose of all writing. To speak the truth as we know it, to explode error, to have sheer fun with words and ideas: very few activities are more rewarding or enjoyable."
"I write for the same reason I breathe: to keep the soul alive."
Bruce Thornton is a member of the American Society of Literary Critics and National Association of Scholars.
Bruce Thornton married Jacalyn Vernice Golston on May 27, 1977. The couple has two children - Isaac and Cole.