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Conclusion: The Infinite Abyss

In his conclusion to Age of Revolutions, Zakaria acknowledges some geopolitical developments that help explain the rise of populism. One of these is the rising flow of refugees fleeing various kinds of crises. “[N]o single issue animates modern populism as much as these waves of uncontrolled migration and the sense that they are causing anarchy,” Zakaria declares. However, he ends with reflections that are more philosophical than historical. The troubles of the present era, it seems, do not really have their roots in any historical particulars. They are the problems of modernity as such. Classical liberalism is losing its appeal because it is part of an understanding of the world in which anchors like religious faith, and loyalty to clan and country, have supposedly been discredited. Illiberal populism is the angry reaction to the sense of spiritual and moral drift that sets in, which the modern world views as ascendant.

Zakaria does not believe, however, that populism can fill the spiritual vacuum modernity has created. The antidote he prescribes for the world’s creeping malaise—if such a thing can be prescribed—is a renewed faith in freedom. This is the same freedom by which people embraced modernity in the first place—and a renewed commitment to classically liberal values, based on an informed (though not uncritical) appreciation of the peace and prosperity those values brought to so many people and nations. But Zakaria offers few concrete suggestions for how to translate this prescription into an actionable political or cultural agenda. In a nutshell, he advises humility and gradualism in social planning, avoidance of identity politics, and a willingness to compromise.

Read a brief essay about Age of Revolutions and the contentious 2024 U.S. Presidential election.

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