The Road to Character

Thematically, Brooks leans into the notion that an “older moral ecology,” what he calls the “crooked timber tradition” (xiv), is a relevant model even in our fast-paced modern era. This tradition, he argues, gave mankind the capacity to better face its moral weaknesses at both the individual and societal levels. He believes that by confronting flaws and weaknesses like prior generations, we will be better able to “shoot for something higher than happiness” (xv). Thereby, personal virtue serves the greater good but without becoming preachy or overly judgmental of those around us; while Brooks never states as much in so many words, his determination to avoid religiously-motivated moralizing is apparent.

Personal anecdotes and anecdotes gathered from others set the precedent for Brooks’ approach even this early in the text. He establishes this precedent by quoting a passage from an email that he received from a veterinarian who read one of his columns. The veterinarian’s email emphasized the notion that true wisdom and fortitude, as well as sincere heart, cannot be taught in a classroom. Rather, we can only learn these qualities through humility sufficient to allow us to learn by example. While pride is not necessarily demonized as a human quality—we should be proud of who we are, as well as the joy we take in existence and sharing it with others—we need to be cautious. Pride in excess has led more often to downfall than to success, which is a crucial point to understand before moving forward in Brooks’ treatise.

Inner psychological landscapes, Brooks explains, will by and large make up the book’s so-called setting. Each example life shared in the following chapters will form an inner landscape, an inner character, an inner journey, that will allow the reader to traverse it within a factual narrative framework. In a sense, readers will be learning by example as they digest the anecdotes from the lives Brooks has chosen to present as effective teaching tools. Although learning essentials of this approach to life can’t be achieved in the classroom, the act of reading is introspective enough that we engage the correct muscles, so to speak, in beginning to grasp Brooks’ methodology.