Thomas Carlyle

On Heroes, Hero-worship and the Heroic in History Thomas Carlyle

Publisher Marketing: This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 188? Excerpt: ...from his father and others, he became a Monk in the Augustine Convent at Erfurt. This was probably the first light-point in the history of Luther, his purer will now first decisively uttering itself; but, for the present, it was still as one light-point in an element all of darkness. He says he was a pious monk, ich bin ein frommer Monch gewesen; faithfully, painfully struggling to work-out the truth of this high act of his; but it was to little purpose. His misery had not lessened; had rather, as it were, increased into infinitude. The drudgeries he had to do, as novice in his Convent, all sorts of slave-work, were not his grievance: the deep earnest soul of the man had fallen into all manner of black scruples, dubitations; he believed himself likely to die soon, and far worse than die. One hears with a new interest for poor Luther that, at this time, he lived in terror of the unspeakable misery; fancied that he was doomed to eternal reprobation. Was it not the humble sincere nature of the man 1 "What was he, that he should be raised to Heaven 1 He that had known only misery, and mean slavery: the news was too blessed to be credible. It could not become clear to him how, by fasts, vigils, formalities and mass-work, a man's soul could be saved. He fell into the blackest wretchedness; had to wander staggering as on the verge of bottomless Despair. It must have been a most blessed discovery, that of an old Latin Bible which he found in the Erfurt Library about this time. He had never seen the Book before. It taught him another lesson than that of fasts and vigils. A brother monk too, of pious experience, was helpful. Luther learned now that a man was saved not by singing masses, but by the infinite grace of God: a more credible hypothesis. He gradually g... Review Citations: Wilson Public Library Catalog 01/01/1993 pg. 682 (EAN 9780192500625, Hardcover) Harvard Business Review 12/01/2001 pg. 17 (EAN 9780192500625, Hardcover) Choice 02/01/2014 (EAN 9780300148626, Other) Choice 02/01/2014 (EAN 9780300148602, Paperback) Contributor Bio:  Carlyle, Thomas Thomas Carlyle was a Victorian-era Scottish author, philosopher, and historian. Raised by a strict Calvinist family, Carlyle abandoned his career with the clergy in 1821 after losing his faith, focusing instead on writing. Carlyle went on to publish such noted works as Life of Schiller, Sartor Resartus--which was inspired by his crisis of faith, and The French Revolution, and became one of the most prominent writers of his day. Carlyle's later works included Heroes and Hero-Worship and Frederick the Great. Carlyle passed away in 1881.