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Why Liberalism Failed

Patrick Deneen argues that liberalism has failed because its successes undermine the social conditions it promises to protect. By elevating individual autonomy, markets, centralized government, and technological control, liberal societies weaken family, community, tradition, civic responsibility, and ecological restraint. The book critiques both progressive and conservative versions of liberalism, treating them as partners rather than opposites. Deneen calls for stronger local practices and institutions that cultivate obligation and self-government. His influential argument has become central to postliberal debate, provoking difficult questions about freedom, pluralism, authority, and democratic reform.

Publisher: Yale University Press
Publication date: 2019
Format: Print edition
Pages: 264
ISBN: 9780300240023

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