The New Freedom: Individualism and Collectivism in the Social Lives of Americans
- ISBN-10
- 0887382983
- ISBN-13
- 9780887382987
- Series
- The New Freedom
- Category
- Social Science
- Pages
- 250
- Language
- English
- Published
- 1990
- Publisher
- Transaction Pub
- Author
- William A. Donohue
Description
The root cause of contemporary American psychological and social disorders, argues William Donohue in this major new book, is the dominant culture's embracement of a fraudulent conception of freedom. In fact, the tension between an individual liberty without limits and the social need for civility and community has created havoc in the lives of many Americans. Conventional wisdom about the nature of freedom is characterized by both the uncoupling of a concept of rights from a concept of responsibilities and by an overweening doctrine of moral neutrality. This preoccupation with individual liberty, to the neglect of other competing values, has left a trail of social discord that will be difficult to redress. Constraint of any kind is now seen as the enemy of liberty, and all that limits or burdens the individual in any way is seen as anathema to freedom. The New Freedom critically examines how this new concept of freedom developed historically and why it exploded on the American scene in the 1960s. Its impact on the deepest recesses of American society, including marriage, the family, sexuality, the schools, the churches, and the criminal justice system, are fully explored. The costs have been high. Information on the psychological and social health of Americans suggests that all is not well. But the ultimate cost, says Qonohue, may be the ultimate failure of liberty, as the fraudulent new freedom collides with the human need for community. Sure to be controversial, The New Freedom will provide policymakers, social scientists, and specialists in the family, education, and religion a compelling new perspective on old questions. The book will also appeal to general readers who seek to understand the root causes of the nation's unprecedented volume of social and psychological problems.
Get the book
Other editions
-
- 1995-01-01
- 250 pages
- Paperback
- Transaction Pub
-
- 2021-09-29
- 216 pages
- Ebook
- Routledge
Similar books
-
Wilson: The road to the White House
By Arthur Stanley LinkThis first volume of a biography that covers the years 1902-1912, which include Wilson's presidency of Princeton, his governorship of New Jersey, and his election to the Presidency.
-
The New Freedom: A Call For the Emancipation of the Generous Energies of a People
By Woodrow WilsonThe New Freedom: A Call For the Emancipation of the Generous Energies of a People
-
The New Freedom: [Illustrated and Biography Added]
By Woodrow WilsonThe New Freedom is only the old revived and clothed in the unconquerable strength of modern America. I have not written a book since the campaign. I did not write this book at all.
-
The New Freedom and the Radicals: Woodrow Wilson, Progressive Views of Radicalism, and the Origins of Repressive Tolerance
By Jacob KramerIn The New Freedom and the Radicals, Jacob Kramer deftly examines how progressivism emerged at a time of critical transformation in American life.
-
The New Freedom a Call for the Emancipation of the Generous Energies of a People
By Woodrow WilsonThe aim of our publishing program is to facilitate rapid access to this vast reservoir literature, and our view is that this is a significant literary work, which deserves to be brought back into print after many decades.
-
Around New Freedom
By Bob KetenheimStudents , from left to right , are as follows : ( first row ) Martha Walker , Grace Seibel , Beulah Taylor , Pearl Rehmeyer , Florence Gale , and Barbara Ilgenfritz ; ( second row ) Victor Blouse , Emory Grove , Lee Smith , Carroll ...
-
Recovery of Wonder: The New Freedom and the Asceticism of Power
By Kenneth SchmitzIn The Recovery of Wonder he proposes we approach the world as a gift in order to regain the sense of wonder Shakespeare so eloquently recognized.
-
State of the Union Addresses
By Franklin D. RooseveltReproduction of the original: State of the Union Addresses by Franklin D. Roosevelt
-
The President as Statesman: Woodrow Wilson and the Constitution
By Daniel D. StidA political scientist who went on to become president, Woodrow Wilson envisioned a "responsible government" in which a strong leader and principled party would integrate the separate executive and legislative...
-
A New Birth of Freedom: Abraham Lincoln and the Coming of the Civil War (with New Foreword)
By Harry V. JaffaThe refrain goes: And this is law, I will maintain, Unto my dying day, sir, That whatsoever king shall reign, I will be Vicar of Bray, sir! Becker's belief in the relativism of all moral and political truth rests upon the assumption ...