Ill Fares The Land

'Ill fares the land, to hastening ills a prey, Where wealth accumulates, and men decay' - Oliver Goldsmith Something is profoundly wrong with the way we live today. For thirty years we have made a virtue out of the pursuit of material self-interest: indeed, this very pursuit now constitutes whatever remains of our sense of shared purpose. But we have forgotten how to think about the life we live together: its goals and purposes. We are now not only post-ideological; we have become post-ethical. We have lost touch with the old questions that have defined politics since the Greeks: is it good? Is it fair? Is it just? Is it right? Will it help bring about a better society? A better world? The social contract that defined postwar life in Europe and America - the guarantee of security, stability and fairness - is no longer assured; in fact, it's no longer part of collective conversation. In this exceptional short book, Tony Judt reveals how we have arrived at our present dangerously confused moment and masterfully crystallizes our great unease, showing how we might yet think ourselves out of it. If we are to replace fear with confidence then we need a different story to tell, about state and society alike: a story that carries moral and political conviction. Providing that story is the purpose of this book.

'Ill fares the land, to hastening ills a prey, Where wealth accumulates, and men decay' - Oliver Goldsmith Something is profoundly wrong with the way we live today. For thirty years we have made a virtue out of the pursuit of material self-interest: indeed, this very pursuit now constitutes whatever remains of our sense of shared purpose. But we have forgotten how to think about the life we live together: its goals and purposes. We are now not only post-ideological; we have become post-ethical. We have lost touch with the old questions that have defined politics since the Greeks: is it good? Is it fair? Is it just? Is it right? Will it help bring about a better society? A better world? The social contract that defined postwar life in Europe and America - the guarantee of security, stability and fairness - is no longer assured; in fact, it's no longer part of collective conversation. In this exceptional short book, Tony Judt reveals how we have arrived at our present dangerously confused moment and masterfully crystallizes our great unease, showing how we might yet think ourselves out of it. If we are to replace fear with confidence then we need a different story to tell, about state and society alike: a story that carries moral and political conviction. Providing that story is the purpose of this book.

Featuring a new preface by bestselling author of Between the World and Me and The Water Dancer , Ta-Nehisi Coates. "We are in for a fight . . . and in that fight Tony's work will be needed. This volume, in particular, will be needed." -- Ta-Nehisi Coates, from the preface Tony Judt called America an eviscerated society, a nation tethered to its government more by tradition and law than collective benefit and unity. Written in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis, Ill Fares the Land takes on the nihilistic individualism of conservatives and the failures of liberals to defend effective government. It reintroduces forgotten alternatives to address our common needs, and asks the central question facing us today: How can we make a good society now?

Featuring a new preface by bestselling author of Between the World and Me and The Water Dancer , Ta-Nehisi Coates. "We are in for a fight . . . and in that fight Tony's work will be needed. This volume, in particular, will be needed." -- Ta-Nehisi Coates, from the preface Tony Judt called America an eviscerated society, a nation tethered to its government more by tradition and law than collective benefit and unity. Written in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis, Ill Fares the Land takes on the nihilistic individualism of conservatives and the failures of liberals to defend effective government. It reintroduces forgotten alternatives to address our common needs, and asks the central question facing us today: How can we make a good society now?