A Conflict of Visions
Ideological Origins of Political Struggles
Basic Books · Print & ebook · June 5, 2007
The landmark explanation of the competing visions of human nature that lie at the heart of our political conflicts “A classic of a very special kind...Reading it is like looking up at the night sky and discovering a new constellation.” —Christian Science Monitor Controversies in politics arise from many sources, but the conflicts that endure for generations or centuries show a remarkably consistent pattern.
- Themes
- Competing visions of human nature, Political and ethical conflict, Reason, justice, equality, and power
- Genres
- Conservatism & Liberalism, Political Philosophy, Political History & Ideas
- Published
- Basic Books, June 5, 2007
Visions in Conflict
Sowell traces political conflicts to two competing visions of what human nature can become.
Come here for
- A framework for thinking about reason, justice, equality, and power
- Political philosophy that connects enduring disputes to rival views of human nature
Expect
- A sustained comparison of constrained and unconstrained outlooks
- Policy disagreements viewed through deeper assumptions about human nature
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The landmark explanation of the competing visions of human nature that lie at the heart of our political conflicts “A classic of a very special kind...Reading it is like looking up at the night sky and discovering a new constellation.” —Christian Science Monitor Controversies in politics arise from many sources, but the conflicts that endure for generations or centuries show a remarkably consistent pattern. In this classic work, Thomas Sowell analyzes this pattern.
Continue reading
He describes the two competing visions that shape our debates about the nature of reason, justice, equality, and power: the “constrained” vision, which sees human nature as unchanging and selfish, and the “unconstrained” vision, in which human nature is malleable and perfectible. A Conflict of Visions offers a convincing case that ethical and policy disputes circle around the disparity between both outlooks.
Where it sits
| Political Philosophy | 58% |
|---|---|
| Conservatism & Liberalism | 37% |
| Political History & Ideas | 16% |
Percentages are BookFrontier’s reading of the book.
Publisher categories
- Economic Theory
- World History
- Political Philosophy
- Political History & Ideas
Show all 5 publisher categories
- Conservatism & Liberalism
- Authors
- Thomas Sowell
- Publisher
- Basic Books
- Published
- June 5, 2007
- Format
- Print & ebook
- Theme
- Competing visions of human nature · Political and ethical conflict · Reason, justice, equality, and power
- Reading lane
- Economic Theory