Overview

This book deconstructs the story of liberalism that John Rawls, author of Political Liberalism, and many others have put forward. Peter L.P. Simpson argues that political liberalism is despotic because it denies to politics a concern with the comprehensive human good; political illiberalism overcomes this despotism and restores genuine freedom. In Political Illiberalism, Simpson provides a detailed account of these political phenomena and presents a political theory opposed to that of Rawls and other proponents of modern liberalism.  Simpson analyses and confronts the assumptions of this liberalism by challenging its view of liberty and especially its cornerstone that politics should not be about the comprehensive good. He presents the fundamentals of the idea of a truer liberalism as derived from human nature, with particular attention to the role and power of religion, using the political thought of Aristotle, the founding fathers of the United States, thinkers of the Roman Empire, and contemporary practice. Political Illiberalism concludes with reflections on morals in the political context of the comprehensive good. Simpson views the modern state as despotically authoritarian; consequently, seeking liberty within it is illusory. Human politics requires devolution of authority to local communities, on the one hand, and a proper distinction between spiritual and temporal powers, on the other. This thought-provoking work is essential for all political scientists and philosophy scholars.

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9781412855747

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Reviews

In the company of Plato, Simpson believes that politics is primarily about guidance, that is, about enlightening the mind and restraining the will. Morals are an important part of community life. People need to behave morally if they are to live well. It is here that spiritual authority can support temporal authority by teaching morality and, one might add, by encouraging obedience to legitimate authority. To the extent that liberalism has removed religion from political life it is little different from Communistic or other totalitarian regimes that rest on a comprehensive vision of life that excludes God. Obviously how one views political authority matters. One understanding of political authority coerces means but not ends; the other coerces ends but not means. Liberty, in Simpson's view, follows the latter. Given the richness of this volume, which can barely be indicated here, one may wish that it be required reading for every entering college freshman, if he hasn't encountered it in high school. -- Jude Dougherty, The Wanderer This is an important and provocative book. . . . In Political Illiberalism, Peter L. P. Simpson launches a refreshingly direct attack on liberalism. He argues that liberalism's professed neutrality is illusory, its conception of legitimate authority untenable, and its underlying vision of human freedom incoherent. In addition, Simpson engages liberalism's cornerstone historical texts, offering a history of liberalism that runs counter to the one that prevails among contemporary liberals. Simpson then makes a positive case for a decidedly illiberal social order, where political authority is derived from a doctrine of human nature and virtue. Liberals will find this book difficult, frustrating, and at times even outlandish, but the core of Simpson's argument is nonetheless formidable. Political Illiberalism is well worth grappling with. -- Robert Talisse, Vanderbilt University In the scholarly world, Peter Simpson is known for his clear, accurate translations of moral and political works by Aristotle and for his learned commentary on those works. In this volume, which owes much to the ruminations of the peripatetic, Simpson sets out to cause a ruckus - and a ruckus he will produce. I know of no scholarly indictment of liberalism and the modern state as lucid and penetrating as this one. Even their defenders will have to pay him heed, for his critique demands an answer. --Paul A. Rahe, Hillsdale College

This is an important and provocative book. . . . In Political Illiberalism, Peter L. P. Simpson launches a refreshingly direct attack on liberalism. He argues that liberalism's professed neutrality is illusory, its conception of legitimate authority untenable, and its underlying vision of human freedom incoherent. In addition, Simpson engages liberalism's cornerstone historical texts, offering a history of liberalism that runs counter to the one that prevails among contemporary liberals. Simpson then makes a positive case for a decidedly illiberal social order, where political authority is derived from a doctrine of human nature and virtue. Liberals will find this book difficult, frustrating, and at times even outlandish, but the core of Simpson's argument is nonetheless formidable. Political Illiberalism is well worth grappling with. -- Robert Talisse, Vanderbilt University In the scholarly world, Peter Simpson is known for his clear, accurate translations of moral and political works by Aristotle and for his learned commentary on those works. In this volume, which owes much to the ruminations of the peripatetic, Simpson sets out to cause a ruckus - and a ruckus he will produce. I know of no scholarly indictment of liberalism and the modern state as lucid and penetrating as this one. Even their defenders will have to pay him heed, for his critique demands an answer. --Paul A. Rahe, Hillsdale College

Author Information

Peter L. P. Simpson is professor of philosophy and classics at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York, USA. He is the author of Goodness and Nature and The Politics of Aristotle.

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