Men Among the Ruins

First edition (publ. Edizioni Dell’Ascia)

Men Among the Ruins: Post-War Reflections of a Radical Traditionalist is a book by Julius Evola.

First published as Gli uomini e le rovine (Italian) in 1953, it is a statement of Evola's view of the political and social manifestations of our time (the Kali Yuga). It is considered the second in Evola's core trilogy (starting with Revolt Against the Modern World and ending with Ride the Tiger).

It was first published in an English translation by Inner Traditions International in 2002 (ISBN 0-89281-905-7). Translated from the revised Italian edition of 1972 by Guido Stucco with a foreword by Joscelyn Godwin, a preface and introduction by Dr. H.T. Hansen and edited by Michael Moynihan. Moynihan's Dominion Press printed a hardbound limited edition of 100 copies, which included a cover painting by Harold McNeill, and an additional essay by John Michell.

Summary

In this work Evola argues for a radical restructuring of society based on his view of Tradition. Evola takes as his jumping off point Italian Fascism and to a lesser degree German National Socialism and describes the ways that the two failed to achieve his ideal. As in Fascism and Nazism, Evola champions a powerful state unified under a rigid code and caste system.

Despite similarities, Evola's ideas differ dramatically from those of the fascists and, while preserving an appreciation of militarism, focus less on modernity than tradition, less on the technological than the spiritual, less on the masses than the person (which Evola distinguishes from the individual). In this work, Evola develops his radical reactionary philosophy. Reactionary is an important word for him, one that he seeks to own. In fact "reactionary" could be seen as an understatement in his case as he seeks to restore the order, not of 100 or 200 years ago, but of literally thousands of years ago.

This work constitutes Evola's only attempt at a book-length explicitly political work and, as such, he regarded it as a failure. Ultimately, Evola would become disenchanted about the prospects of achieving a radical reactionary restructuring of society and would advocate that an enlightened or "differentiated" man should Ride the Tiger – the title of his last work – of modern civilization.

Works by Julius Evola

1920s	Arte Astratta, Posizione Teoretica Le Parole Obscure du Paysage Interieur Essays on Magical Idealism Theory of the Absolute Individual The Yoga of Power Pagan Imperialism Introduction to Magic

1930s	Phenomenology of the Absolute Individual The Hermetic Tradition Mask and Face of Contemporary Spiritualism Revolt Against the Modern World Three Aspects of the Jewish Problem The Mystery of the Grail The Myth of the Blood

1940s	Synthesis of the Doctrine of Race The Elements of Racial Education The Aryan Doctrine of Battle and Victory Gli Ebrei hanno voluto questa Guerra The Doctrine of Awakening

1950s	Orientamenti Men Among the Ruins Eros and the Mysteries of Love

1960s and 1970s	Ride the Tiger The Path of Cinnabar Fascism Viewed from the Right L'Arco e la Clava Il Taoismo

Posthumous	Meditations on the Peaks Ultimi Scritti The Path of Enlightenment Zen: The Religion of the Samurai Rene Guenon: A Teacher for Modern Times Metaphysics of War

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