Liberalism and Its Discontents

A TIMES BEST PHILOSOPHY & IDEAS BOOK OF 2022

A defence of liberalism by the renowned political philosopher

'We need more thinkers as wise as Fukuyama digging their fingers into the soil of our predicament' - The New York Times

'A brilliantly acute summary of the way some aspects of liberal thought have consumed themselves' - Guardian

'One of the West's most interesting public intellectuals' - Times

'Hard to think of a better case for liberal centrism' - FT

Liberalism - the comparatively mild-mannered sibling to the more ardent camps of nationalism and socialism - has never been so divisive as today. From Putin's populism, the Trump administration, and autocratic rulers in democracies the world over, it has both thrived and failed under identity politics, authoritarianism, social media, and a weakened free press worldwide.

Since its inception following the post-Reformation wars, liberalism has come under attack from conservatives and progressives alike and today is dismissed by many as an 'obsolete doctrine'. In this brilliant and concise exposition, Francis Fukuyama sets out the cases for and against its classical premises: observing the rule of law, the independence of judges, means over ends, and most of all, tolerance.

Pithy, to the point, and ever pertinent, this is political dissection at its very best.