On Freedom

An urgent and masterly exploration of freedom - by the acclaimed, bestselling author of On Tyranny

A brilliant exploration of freedom - what it is, how it's been misunderstood, and why it's our only chance for survival - by the acclaimed, bestselling author of On Tyranny.

Freedom is the great Western commitment, but we have lost sight of what it means - and this is leading us into crisis. Too many of us look at freedom as the absence of state power- we think we're free if we can do and say as we please, and protect ourselves from government interference. But true freedom isn't so much freedom from, as freedom to - the freedom to thrive, to take risks for futures we choose by working together. Freedom is the value that makes all other values possible.

Drawing on the work of philosophers and political dissidents, conversations with contemporary thinkers and his own experiences, Snyder identifies the practices and attitudes - the habits of mind - that will allow us to design a government in which we and future generations can flourish. We come to appreciate the importance of traditions but also the role of institutions. Intimate yet ambitious, this book helps forge a new consensus rooted in a politics of abundance, generosity and grace.

Snyder's book On Tyranny has inspired millions around the world to fight for freedom; On Freedom helps us see exactly what we're fighting for. It is a thrilling intellectual journey and a tour de force of political philosophy.

About the Author

Timothy Snyder is Levin Professor of History at Yale University and the author of a number of critically acclaimed books including The Road to Unfreedom and most recently On Tyranny which was an international bestseller. His previous books include Black Earth, which was longlisted for the Samuel Johnson Prize and won the annual prize of the Dutch Auschwitz Committee; and Bloodlands, which won the Hannah Arendt Prize, the Leipzig Book Prize for European Understanding, the Ralph Waldo Emerson Award in the Humanities and the literature award of the American Academy of Arts and Letters. He lives in New Haven, Connecticut.