Includes bibliographical references (pages 155-170) and index (pages 171-178).

What is classical liberalism? -- From liberalism to neoliberalism -- The selfish individual -- The sovereign self -- Liberalism turns on itself -- The critique of rationality -- Technology, privacy, and freedom of speech -- Are there alternatives? -- National identity -- Principles of a liberal society.

A short book about the challenges to liberalism from the right and the left by the bestselling author of The Origins of Political Order. Classical liberalism is in a state of crisis. Developed in the wake of Europe's wars over religion and nationalism, liberalism is a system for governing diverse societies, which is grounded in fundamental principles of equality and the rule of law. It emphasizes the rights of individuals to pursue their own forms of happiness free from encroachment by government. It's no secret that liberalism didn't always live up to its own ideals. In America, many people were denied equality before the law. Who counted as full human beings worthy of universal rights was contested for centuries, and only recently has this circle expanded to include women, African Americans, LGBTQ+ people, and others. Conservatives complain that liberalism empties the common life of meaning. As the renowned political philosopher Francis Fukuyama shows in Liberalism and Its Discontents, the principles of liberalism have also, in recent decades, been pushed to new extremes by both the right and the left: neoliberals made a cult of economic freedom, and progressives focused on identity over human universality as central to their political vision. The result, Fukuyama argues, has been a fracturing of our civil society and an increasing peril to our democracy--Publisher's description.

Developed in the wake of Europe's wars over religion and nationalism, liberalism is a system for governing diverse societies that is grounded in fundamental principles of equality and the rule of law. Recently this has been expanded to include, in varying degrees, women, African American, LGBTQ+ people, and other marginalized groups. Fukuyama argues that by focusing on identity over human universality, we have been fracturing our civil society and increasing peril to our democracy--Adapted from jacket.