The Retreat of Western Liberalism
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3.8 • 6 Ratings
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- $11.99
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
An “insightful and harrowing” analysis of the state of Western-style democracy by the Financial Times columnist and author of Time to Start Thinking (The New York Times).
In his widely acclaimed book Time to Start Thinking, Financial Times columnist Edward Luce charted the course of America’s economic and geopolitical decline, proving to be a prescient voice on the state of the nation.
In The Retreat of Western Liberalism, Luce makes a larger statement about the weakening of western hegemony and the crisis of democratic liberalism—of which Donald Trump and his European counterparts are not the cause, but a symptom. Luce argues that we are on a menacing trajectory brought about by ignorance of what it took to build the West, arrogance toward society’s economic losers, and complacency about our system’s durability—attitudes that have been emerging since the fall of the Berlin Wall. Unless the West can rekindle an economy that produces gains for the majority of its people, its political liberties may be doomed.
Combining on-the-ground reporting with economic analysis, Luce offers a detailed projection of the consequences of the Trump administration and a forward-thinking analysis of what those who believe in enlightenment values must do to protect them.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
With this wide-ranging account, Luce (Time to Start Thinking: America in the Age of Descent) enters the fray of books posing the post-2016 question "What just happened?" He begins with a summary of the current global economy's formation and its connections to prevailing modes of governance. This leads into a history of liberal democracy, which Luce argues is held together most strongly by economic growth. In the absence of such growth, illiberal tendencies take hold. The author then explores the possible consequences of the decline of Western hegemony, including a theoretical war against China which Luce calls "not a prediction" but "a plausible extrapolation of the direction in which Trump is taking U.S. foreign policy." The final section asks, briefly, what is to be done. Luce's historical analysis is on point and he seems to understand the current situation as well as one could hope. One difficulty lies, however, is trying to predict the future in an era defined by a figure as mercurial as the 45th president. The main points are still relevant, even if some of the particulars will be dated before the book hits the shelves.
