Rahe publishes book
Professor publishes book on anniversary of de Tocqueville's death; signs copies of the book after lecture Tuesday
Marieke van der Vaart
Issue date: 4/9/09 Section: News
|
Rahe, who will celebrate his second year at Hillsdale College this summer, said this book, his fourth, marks the end of a series of three books inspired by research he did before coming to Hillsdale.
Associate Professor of History Paul Moreno said Hillsdale professors used Rahe's books about the Roman Empire even before Rahe took a teaching post here.
"His book [Republics Ancient and Modern: Classical Republicanism and the American Revolution] is something everybody used before he came," Moreno said.
His new book follows in the intellectual progression of his previous book, which traces French philosophers' reviews of English-speaking republics. Rousseau and Montesquieu both warned about modern republics' tendency toward despotism.
"Tocqueville comes along and takes Rousseau's critique of [republican] society seriously but looks at the American experiment and says they take care of this through local organizations," Rahe said.
He identified those local organizations as the church and the family, both institutions absent in France during de Tocqueville's lifetime. Besides pointing out Tocqueville's position, Rahe says there's a timely reason for the book's publication: All the institutional checks Tocqueville credited for keeping American democracy from sliding into despotism are gone today.
"Forty percent of children were born out of wedlock last year," Rahe said. "Churches don't teach rigorous morality. Local government has been eaten up by federal government. We've contracted what I call the French disease."
Thus the book looks to one of the earliest American historians to diagnose today's problems.
"Libertarianism, if it is to be salutary must be socially conservative, and social conservatism, if it is to be salutary must be libertarian," Rahe said. "A libertarianism that descends into libertinism paves the way to soft despotism and a social conservatism that embraces the welfare state paves the wave to soft despotism."
Rahe said spreading a timeless message requires a lot of
traveling and careful planning.
"I'm taking advantage of the anniversary of de Toqueville's death," he said. "The trick is to get the media.
From sending out pre-published copies of the book, called galleys, to book signings to interviews and book reviews, Rahe's book has been featured on Instapundit and has upcom
ing book reviews in publications like The Weekly Standard
and National Review.
"Traveling and signing books used to the way to go," he said, "Amazon has changed that. Media sells books."
Students interested in Rahe's book can pre-order it from Amazon.com at a 28 percent
discount.
For students especially interested in the subject, Rahe will also offer a class this fall on the subject.
"The book will not be mandatory reading," he said, laughing.
Be the first to comment on this story