Against Liberalism

In the West, liberalism is hegemonic. Civilization is decaying all around us, yet liberal democrats have declared their system to be "the end of history." We are told there is "no alternative" to capitalism. The Left has abandoned socialism for "neoliberalism." The Right has abandoned nation and tradition for "classical liberalism." Freedom is the only way.

In Against Liberalism: Society Is Not a Market, Alain de Benoist shows the inadequacy of liberalism's philosophical premises: individualism, self-interest, progressivism, human rights, capitalism, market values, and "economic man." He shows that liberalism in practice is incompatible with genuine diversity and with democratic, communitarian, and conservative values. He suggests that society can have a market without being a market. It turns out that the best society is one in which not everything is up for sale.

"Alain de Benoist's Against Liberalism offers a powerful critique of liberalism as both a philosophy and a political and economic system, based on the writer's firm belief that a viable human society must be something more than just a market. I welcome this readable and beautifully produced English translation, which will give his ideas a global reach and impact."

"Liberalism's most fundamental doctrine is that society is a mere collection of individuals, each of whom seeks to maximize his self-interest. Liberalism denies the existence of any objective human good in favor of subjective preferences. It denies that there is a common good beyond a mere aggregate of individual preferences. Alain de Benoist argues that these ideas are destructive of human identity and of much of what makes life worth living. In the present critique he points the way back to a politics based on real decisions in pursuit of the common good."