''The Road to Character'' is the fourth book written by journalist David Brooks. Brooks taught an undergraduate course at

Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...

for three years during the 2010s on

humility Humility is the quality of being humble. Dictionary definitions accentuate humility as a low self-regard and sense of unworthiness. In a religious context humility can mean a recognition of self in relation to a deity (i.e. God), and subsequent ...

, the subject of this book. Published in 2015, the author says, "I wrote it, to be honest, to save my own soul."Brooks, p. xiii. According to ''The Guardian,'' Brooks decided that he had spent "...too much time cultivating what he calls 'the résumé virtues' – racking up impressive accomplishments – and too little on 'the eulogy virtues', the character strengths for which we’d like to be remembered."

Outline

Brooks begins with Adam I and Adam II, two contradictory sides of human nature described in ''

The Lonely Man of Faith ''The Lonely Man of Faith'' is a philosophical essay written by Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, first published in the summer 1965 issue of Tradition, and later as a book by Doubleday in 1992. In ''The Lonely Man of Faith'' Soloveitchik reads the ...

'' by Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik. Adam I is the external, career-driven, ambitious side, which Brooks calls the "résumé" self. The subject of this book, Adam II, is internal, humble and the "eulogy" self, the one who “wants to have a serene inner character.” The bulk of the book is eight chapters of biographical sketches. Loosely one per chapter they are:

Frances Perkins Frances Perkins (born Fannie Coralie Perkins; April 10, 1880 – May 14, 1965) was an American workers-rights advocate who served as the 4th United States secretary of labor from 1933 to 1945, the longest serving in that position. A member of th ...

Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; ; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was an American military officer and statesman who served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, ...

with a page or two devoted to redefining

sin In a religious context, sin is a transgression against divine law. Each culture has its own interpretation of what it means to commit a sin. While sins are generally considered actions, any thought, word, or act considered immoral, selfish, s ...

for contemporary times, Dorothy Day, George Marshall,

A. Philip Randolph Asa Philip Randolph (April 15, 1889 – May 16, 1979) was an American labor unionist and civil rights activist. In 1925, he organized and led the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, the first successful African-American led labor union. In ...

and Bayard Rustin who organized the

March on Washington The March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, also known as simply the March on Washington or The Great March on Washington, was held in Washington, D.C., on August 28, 1963. The purpose of the march was to advocate for the civil and economic righ ...

, the novelist George Eliot and her mate George Lewes,

Augustine Augustine of Hippo ( , ; la, Aurelius Augustinus Hipponensis; 13 November 354 – 28 August 430), also known as Saint Augustine, was a theologian and philosopher of Berbers, Berber origin and the bishop of Hippo Regius in Numidia (Roman pr ...

and his mother

Monica Monica may refer to: People *Monica (actress) (born 1987), Indian film actress *Monica (given name), a given name (including a list of people and characters with the name) *Monica (singer) (born 1980), American R&B singer, songwriter, producer, ...

Samuel Johnson Samuel Johnson (18 September 1709 – 13 December 1784), often called Dr Johnson, was an English writer who made lasting contributions as a poet, playwright, essayist, moralist, critic, biographer, editor and lexicographer. The ''Oxford ...

and

Michel de Montaigne Michel Eyquem, Sieur de Montaigne ( ; ; 28 February 1533 – 13 September 1592), also known as the Lord of Montaigne, was one of the most significant philosophers of the French Renaissance. He is known for popularizing the essay as a liter ...

, winding up with sketches of

Johnny Unitas John Constantine Unitas (; May 7, 1933 – September 11, 2002) was an American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 18 seasons, primarily with the Baltimore Colts. Following a career that spanned from 1956 ...

and

Joe Namath Joseph William Namath (; ; born May 31, 1943) is a former American football quarterback who played in the American Football League (AFL) and National Football League (NFL) for 13 seasons, primarily with the New York Jets. He played college foot ...

. Each chapter describes the personal weaknesses that the individual overcame. Brooks concludes with fifteen numbered points, a sort of CliffsNotes for those who would like the "condensed message of this book."

Reception

Brooks received positive reviews from ''

The New York Times Book Review ''The New York Times Book Review'' (''NYTBR'') is a weekly paper-magazine supplement to the Sunday edition of ''The New York Times'' in which current non-fiction and fiction books are reviewed. It is one of the most influential and widely rea ...

'', '' Washingtonian'', '' Booklist'', and ''

Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of B ...

''. The book received a very negative review from The

Guardian Guardian usually refers to: * Legal guardian, a person with the authority and duty to care for the interests of another * ''The Guardian'', a British daily newspaper (The) Guardian(s) may also refer to: Places * Guardian, West Virginia, Unite ...

that states that "David Brooks’s quest to discover the fundamentals of good character gets hopelessly lost along th
way
. The book was the #1 bestseller in

Amazon.com Amazon.com, Inc. ( ) is an American multinational technology company focusing on e-commerce, cloud computing, online advertising, digital streaming, and artificial intelligence. It has been referred to as "one of the most influential economi ...

's Personal Transformation category of self-help books, and in the Ethics & Morality category of philosophy books. As of mid-April and early May 2015, on the ''Wall Street Journal'' Best Seller list it was #4. Reuters reported it was the #3 best selling hardcover nonfiction book (based on data from independent and chain bookstores, book wholesalers and independent distributors across the U.S.). It was #9 on the Audible list of Nonfiction bestsellers.

Notes

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Road to Character, The 2015 non-fiction books Ethics books