Pitfalls of Cold War Liberalism

How Berlin sympathizes with Maistre over Marx

[Painting by April Burke]

I’ve recently written a couple of essays on Isaiah Berlin’s essay “Joseph de Maistre and the Origins of Fascism.” First, I introduced Berlin’s thesis that Maistre represents the earliest manifestation of fascist ideology. Second, I introduced Maistre’s own worldview, one wherein society is organized around the executioner.

Here, …