On Freedom

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER ΓÇó A ΓÇ£visionaryΓÇ¥ (The Guardian) exploration of freedomΓÇöwhat it is,how itΓÇÖs been misunderstoodand why itΓÇÖs our only chance for survivalΓÇöby the acclaimed Yale historian and author of On Tyranny ΓÇ£[SnyderΓÇÖs] deep political and philosophical examination of how to . . . create and sustain freedom provides a hopeful view for the future.ΓÇ¥ΓÇöLos Angeles Times Timothy Snyder has been called ΓÇ£the leading interpreter of our dark times.ΓÇ¥ As a historianhe has given us startling reinterpretations of political collapse and mass killing. As a public intellectualhe has turned that knowledge toward counsel and predictionworking against authoritarianism here and abroad. His book On Tyranny has inspired millions around the world to fight for freedom. Nowin this tour de force of political philosophyhe helps us see exactly what weΓÇÖre fighting for. Freedom is the great American commitmentbut as Snyder argueswe have lost sight of what it meansΓÇöand this is leading us into crisis. Too many of us look at freedom as the absence of state power: We think we’re free if we can do and say as we pleaseand protect ourselves from government overreach. But true freedom isnΓÇÖt so much freedom from as freedom toΓÇöthe freedom to thriveto take risks for futures we choose by working together. Freedom is the value that makes all other values possible. On Freedom takes us on a thrilling intellectual journey. Drawing on the work of philosophers and political dissidentsconversations with contemporary thinkersand his own experiences coming of age in a time of American exceptionalismSnyder identifies the practices and attitudesΓÇöthe habits of mindΓÇöthat will allow us to design a government in which we and future generations can flourish. We come to appreciate the importance of traditions (championed by the right) but also the role of institutions (the purview of the left). Intimate yet ambitiousthis book helps forge a new consensus rooted in a politics of abundancegenerosityand grace.