The purpose of this essay is to display how the Enlightenment’s
arête became its harmartia. In other words, it is to show how
Modernity’s greatest virtue became its tragic flaw. Its virtue
was to separate the Big Three: the Good, the True, and the
Beautiful. This differentiation lead to all the positive aspects
of Modern existence (human rights, quality of life, value of
personal expression, etc.) that pre-Modernity had not yet made
explicit. However, this virtue became a tragic flaw as the Big
Three not only moved apart to define their own turf, but also
became totally fragmented and disassociated, unable to
communicate with one another. The True was defended by objective
scientific investigation. It represented a form of knowing that
revealed the “It” world of matter in motion. The Beautiful was
defended by subjective aesthetic interpretation. It represented
a form of knowing that revealed the “I” world of imagination and
artistic expression. The Good was defended by “the people,” who
together formed the fr