The Everlasting Man

A new, guided version of The Everlasting Man, in collaboration with Word on Fire (with introduction, notes, and commentary by Dale Ahlquist), will be released Spring 2024. You can sign up to be notified of its release on our home page, www.chesterton.org 

This Dover edition of The Everlasting Man is one of Chesterton’s greatest and most important books. Written as a sort of rebuttal to H.G. Wells’ Outline of History, this is Chesterton’s view of history, presented in two parts: “On The Creature Called Man,” and “On The Man Called Christ,” arguing that the central character in history is Christ, and that no explanation other than the Christian one makes as much sense. When the book was first published, The Times Literary Supplement wrote: “Mr. Chesterton has a quite unusual power of seeing the obvious, and it is quite true that many learned men seem to have lost that power. There are many modern theories whose origins we can understand only on the hypothesis that their authors have spent their whole live in one room.”

What makes human beings uniquely human? In this thoughtful response to the rampant social Darwinism of the early twentieth century, G K. Chesterton explains how religion — a blend of philosophy and mythology — satisfies both the human intellect and the spirit, and sets man starkly apart from any other living creature.

Written in 1925, this enduring polemic still strikes a modern chord. Addressing evolution, feminism, and cultural relativism within the context of religion, the book also examines religious skepticism. How does one sustain belief in Jesus Christ — and the Church — when, throughout history, the key to religious truth has been constantly reshaped? According to Chesterton, the shape of the key is not important. What matters is that it fits the lock and opens the door. An emphatic affirmation of Christian faith, The Everlasting Man is leavened with the author’s characteristic wit and wisdom, and appeals to the mind as well as the heart.