Dr. Small Talk in your ears
Summertime slowdown + a new class on the New Right
Dear readers,
It’s nearly August and I am hoping to take some time off during these dog days of summer (time off = finishing my long-delayed book proposal). In that spirit, I am sharing two recent podcast episodes for your listening pleasure. I’ll be back in a few weeks with a new post, pinkie promise.
First up, I was a guest on Know Your Enemy, an incredible podcast about the (mostly) American Right hosted by Matt Sitman and Sam Adler-Bell. I’ve been a KYE super-fan for a long time, and it was an absolute blast to talk with them about Yoram Hazony, the National Conservatism movement, and the Israeli model of illiberal democracy.
Next up, I was glad to appear on a recent episode of the delightfully named Jewish Currents podcast, On the Nose. I spoke with JC journalist Alex Kane and Matt Duss of Center for International Policy about J.D. Vance and the GOP’s foreign policy realignment (just don’t call it isolationism for the reasons Matt and I detail!).
And finally, I’m pleased to announce that I’ll be teaching an all-new Brooklyn Institute class on the New Right. I’ll be offering two online sections starting in September, one that meets Sunday afternoons EST and one that meets Tuesday evenings GMT (aka afternoons in the US). Full details and enrollment links below!
The New Right
The convulsions of 2016—Brexit and the election of Donald Trump to the American presidency—are broadly understood as a watershed moment in the emergence of a new form of right-wing politics. Variously referred to as the New Right, Post-liberalism, or Neoreactionary, the constellation of forces that congealed around these transatlantic shocks represent a formidable challenge both to liberal democracy and to mainstream conservative movements. What’s new about the “New Right,” and who are the leading figures and organizations reshaping the political landscape in democracies across the globe?
This course surveys the major currents that together compose the New Right, from Catholic Integralists, who regard religious principles as the bedrock of law and policy, to National Conservatives with their fixation on ethno-nationalist revival to the Neo-Monarchists agitating for an American Caesar. Situating these movements in the context of neoliberal economic crises, social transformations, and political dysfunction, we will ask: What sort of theories about human nature and the role of government animate New Right thinkers? In what ways do they challenge mainstream conservative orthodoxies regarding individualism, democracy, and the free market? What points of continuity bind them to twentieth-century fascist and reactionary movements? What vision for the future of both American and global politics do they advance, and what sort of institutional infrastructure have they built to enact their goals? Readings will include works by a broad range of New Right thinkers—including Rod Dreher, Patrick Deneen, Yoram Hazony, Douglas Murray, Sohrab Ahmari, Nick Land, and Curtis Yarvin—alongside policy documents and statements by several New Right institutions, including the Edmund Burke Foundation/National Conservatism, American Compass, American Moment, and the rebooted Heritage Foundation.
Enroll here for Sunday section
Sundays, 2:00-5:00pm ET (7:00-10:00 pm GMT)
September 15 — October 06, 2024
4 weeks
Enroll here for Tuesday section
Tuesdays, 6:30-9:30pm GMT (1:30-3:30 ET)
September 10 — October 01, 2024
4 weeks