Reconsidering American Liberalism : The Troubled Odyssey Of The Liberal Idea

Forty years ago Louis Hartz surveyed American political thought in his classic The Liberal Tradition in America. He concluded that American politics was based on a broad liberal consensus made possible by a unique American historical experience, a thesis that seemed to minimize the role of political conflict.Today, with conflict on the rise and with much of liberalism in disarray, James P. Young revisits these questions to reevaluate Hartz’s interpretation of American politics. Young’s treatment of key movements in our history, especially Puritanism and republicanism’s early contribution to the Revolution and the Constitution, demonstrates in the spirit of Dewey and others that the liberal tradition is richer and more complex than Hartz and most contemporary theorists have allowed.The breadth of Young’s account is unrivaled. Reconsidering American Liberalism gives voice not just to Locke, Jefferson, Hamilton, Madison, Lincoln, and Dewey but also to Rawls, Shklar, Kateb, Wolin, and Walzer. In addition to broad discussions of all the major figures in over 300 years of political thought—with Lincoln looming particularly large—Young touches upon modern feminism and conservatism, multiculturalism, postmodernism, rights-based liberalism, and social democracy. Out of these contemporary materials Young synthesizes a new position, a smarter and tougher liberalism not just forged from historical materials but reshaped in the rough and tumble of contemporary thought and politics.This exceptionally timely study is both a powerful survey of the whole of U.S. political thought and a trenchant critique of contemporary political debates. At a time of acrimony and confusion in our national politics, Young enables us to see that salvaging a viable future depends upon our understanding how we have reached this point.Never without his own opinions, Young is scrupulously fair to the widest range of thinkers and marvelously clear in getting to the heart of their ideas. Although his book is a substantial contribution to political theory and the history of ideas, it is always accessible and lively enough for the informed general reader. It is essential reading for anyone who cares about the future of U.S. political thought or, indeed, about the future of the country itself. Cover Half Title Title Copyright Dedication Contents Preface and Acknowledgments Introduction: The Role of Liberalism in American Politics 1 The Ambiguous Legacy of Puritanism Puritan Doctrine Some Consequences of Puritanism 2 John Locke and the Theory of Liberal Constitutionalism The Theory Outlined The Individual in Society Property and the Economy Society, Government, and the Theory of Consent Conclusions 3 Liberalism, Republicanism, and Revolution Liberalism and Revolution The Republican Correction 4 Liberalism, Republicanism, and the Constitution The Two American Constitutions The Federalist and the Defense of the Constitution Hamilton, Madison, and the Ambiguities of The Federalist The Response of the Anti-Federalist Opposition 5 Defining the Constitutional Text and the Emergence of Party Politics Franklin, Adams, Paine, and the Ambiguities of Transition Hamilton, Jefferson, and the Emergence of Party Politics The Hamiltonian Theory The Jeffersonian Theory Conclusions 6 Some Notes on Jacksonian Democracy The Jacksonian Ideology Industrialism and the Ideology of Work Reflections on the Whig Opposition Coda: Tocqueville on American Democracy 7 Abolition and the Crisis of Liberalism Slavery in the Constitution Calhoun, Fitzhugh, and the Attempt to Legitimate Slavery Ideas and Tactics in the Antislavery Movement 8 Laissez-Faire Conservatism and the Legitimation of Corporate Capitalism Laissez-Faire, Conservative Darwinism, and the New Legitimacy The Impact of Laissez-Faire Conservatism 9 The Dilemmas of Populist Reform The Enigma of Populism Conclusion 10 The Problem of Progressivism The New Nationalism The New Freedom Some Preliminary Conclusions Coda: John Dewey and the Philosophy of Progressivism 11 The New Deal and the Apotheosis of Reform The Two New Deals The Legacy of the New Deal 12 Liberalism in Search of New Directions Social Science as Liberal Ideology Stirrings of Discontent The New Left: Corporate Liberalism and Participatory Democracy 13 Race, Gender, Difference, and Equality The Problem of Racial Equality The Feminist Challenge to Liberalism Liberalism, Postmodernism, and Multiculturalism 14 Liberalism in Retreat: The Conservative Critique Conservatism as a Movement A Typology of Conservatives Straussian Conservatism and American Politics 15 Rights-Based Liberalism Rights in Contemporary Liberalism Rights Theory After Rawls 16 Problems of Liberalism: Rights, Economy, Community, and the State The Communitarian Critique of Liberalism Democratic Populism as a Critique of Liberalism Social Democracy and the Liberal Tradition 17 Conclusion Notes About the Book and Author Index In a survey of American political thought unrivaled in its breadth, Young gives voice not just to Locke, Jefferson, and Madison but also to Rawls, Shklar, Kateb, Wolin, and Walzer. To the problems facing Lincoln and Dewey, he brings modern feminism, multiculturalism, postmodernism, and the current conservative backlash. Broadly informed, scrupulously fair, and marvelously clear, Reconsidering American Liberalism is a tour de force of historical exposition and contemporary analysis as well as significant contribution to the future of liberal thought.