Abstract
This article argues for recovering Thomas Reid’s Scottish Common Sense philosophy as an antidote to critical theory in contemporary American higher education. From the Revolution to the Civil War, Common Sense realism—led by John Witherspoon and James McCosh—formed an orthodoxy in colleges like Princeton, Harvard, and Brown, rejecting the “ideal theory” of René Descartes, John Locke, and David Hume in favor of direct perception, self-evident first principles, and a divinely ordered reality. Critical theory, rooted in Herbert Marcuse’s negative thinking, echoes ideal theory’s skepticism by reducing truth to power and emancipation. Common Sense metaphysics can counter this by refocusing on the healthy human condition, the whole person, and objective excellence, restoring shared discourse for self-government. The article recommends incorporating natural theology, moral philosophy, and rhetoric into new classical and civic education institutes.