James Webb (historian)
- James Webb (historian)
James Webb (
January 13 ,1946 -May 9 ,1980 ) was a Scottish historian and biographer.Webb, born in
Edinburgh , was educated at Harrow andTrinity College, Cambridge . He is remembered primarily for two works "The Occult Underground" and "The Occult Establishment". "Occult Underground" was originally titled "Flight from Reason". He also wrote an important, and somewhat debated biography ofG. I. Gurdjieff , "The Harmonious Circle". His theories of Gurdjieff's identity as a foreign agent, and theories on where he actually travelled before 1917, are the controversial points in this book. It is considered to be the most comprehensive Gurdjieff biography.Webb's work challenges theories of
secularism , theories of decline in organisedreligion andspirituality . Webb argued that the 19th and 20th centuries had also been marked by a revolt against the Enlightenment, and that the rise of "irrationalism" was much more marked than the rise of rationalism, especially before, during and after theFirst World War and theSecond World War . Webb traced the influence ofoccult and mystical groups and writers onliterature ,philosophy andpolitics .Webb was generally ignored in his lifetime, but with the increasing rise of new age spirituality in later years, his work now seems increasingly prescient. After increasing mental health difficulties, Webb committed
suicide in 1980. There have been speculations that his death was somehow connected to his work withoccultism , but this seems not to be the case.elected works
"Flight from Reason" (1971) MacDonald & Co., London ISBN 0-356-03634-0
"The Occult Underground" (1988) Open Court Publishing. ISBN 0-8126-9073-7
"The Occult Establishment: The Dawn of the New Age and The Occult Establishment" (1976) Open Court Publishing. ISBN 0-87548-434-4
"The Harmonious Circle: The Lives and Work of G. I. Gurdjieff, P.D. Ouspensky, and Their Followers" (1980) Putnam Publishing. ISBN 0-399-11465-3
External links
[http://www.gurdjieff-internet.com/article_print.php?ID=227&W=37 An Appreciation of James Webb, by Joyce Collin-Smith]
"The Occult Webb: An Appreciation of the life and Work of James Webb," compiled by John Robert Colombo, with contributions by Colin Wilson and Joyce Collin-Smith (1990) Colombo & Company. ISBN 1-896308-56-2
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