Two Faces of Liberalism

Like its widely praised predecessor False Dawn, Two Faces of Liberalism, hailed by the Los Angeles Times as "elegant and powerful," offers a thoughtful and provocative analysis of the liberal tradition in politics. John Gray, an eminent professor at the London School of Economics, "picks large and interesting topics and says arresting things about them," according to the New York Review of Books. Two Faces of Liberalism argues that, in its beginning, liberalism contained two contradictory philosophies of tolerance. In one, it put forward the enlightenment vision of a universal civilization. In the other, it framed terms for peaceful coexistence between warring communities and between different ways of life. In this major contribution to political theory, Gray's new book "takes us beyond the current debate"(The New York Times Book Review) of traditional liberalism to keep up with the complex political realities of today's increasingly divided world.
Gray traces the historic roots and modern manifestations of liberalism; not the one bandied about by politicians but the one based in the philosophical underpinnings of Western civilization. Gray's premise is that tolerance is a major element in the tradition of liberalism and that there are currently two conflicting philosophies regarding tolerance. One is the assumption that there is one ideal of the "good life" and that rational progress will lead all to this conclusion; the other allows for many philosophical paths to the "good life." Gray examines some of the one-ideal philosophies of John Locke and Immanuel Kant versus the peaceful coexistence of multiple-ideal philosophies postulated by Thomas Hobbes and David Hume. But Gray is at his best when he evaluates the human quest for the "good life," modus vivendi . Gray notes that modern reality reflects such a multitude of paths to the good life, not only among different people but also within a single group, that to assume a single ideal is incompatible with modern life. This is an appropriate philosophical paradigm shift in this age of globalization and diversity.