Every human being would then have equal opportunity, not to rise up in the world in the light of any mathematical measure, but to develop his own special capacities for leading a rich life. Who would be able to say the scientist was superior to the porter with admirable qualities as a father, the civil servant with unusual skill at gaining prizes to the lorry driver with unusual skill at growing roses? The classless society would also be the tolerant society, in which individual differences were actively encouraged as we all passively tolerated, in which full meaning was at last given to the dignity of man. Were we to evaluate people, not only according to their intelligence and their education, their occupation and their power, but according to the kindliness and their courage, their imagination and their sensitivity, their sympathy and generosity, there could be no classes. The classless society would be one which both possessed and acted upon plural values. One of the most poignant parts of the book is where Young imagines a revolutionary movement publishing the Chelsea Manifesto, which beautifully expresses a better vision for society: But to a very large extent it's hard to see much difference between our current reality and his dystopia. The very economic growth that justified meritocratic power has been harder to achieve than the book imagined and if we have learnt anything since 1958 it's that economic success has got very little to do with clever people in Whitehall. Of course there were some things he got wrong. A society focused on economic growth and international competition, but losing sight of real values and its own humanity.Families and communities robbed of power and control over their own destinies because they are deemed incapable or mistrusted.Captains of industry and government rewarding themselves for successes that only they believe they have achieved.Political parties committed to meritocracy and equal opportunities - but cut-off from the poor and disadvantaged.Today 2033 is not far away and the meritocracy that Young described seems more real than ever: Today we frankly recognize that democracy can be no more than an aspiration, and have rule not so much by the people as by the cleverest people not an aristocracy of birth, not a plutocracy of wealth, but a true meritocracy of talent. The book was written in 1958, and it offers the perspective of a successful meritocrat looking backward from 2033 to the Twentieth Century and remembering the steps by which meritocracy was achieved: Michael Young's classic satire on the development of the meritocracy - rule by an elite who have determined exactly the educational qualities necessary to promote economic growth and who are then selected and rewarded for those special skills - is even more relevant today than ever.
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