Rethinking Open Society

Michael Ignatieff served as President and Rector of CEU between 2016 and 2021. He now is a professor in CEU's history department. Ignatieff comes to CEU after serving as Edward R. Murrow Professor of Practice of the Press, Politics, and Public Policy at Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government.Stefan Roch is researcher at the Central European University.

"When did the open society become so monotone? And what if the world doesn't want its problems solved by self-congratulatory people? The result of this gulf in understanding is written across our politics. Attitudes to higher education was one of the key factors in the vote for Donald Trump. In the Brexit referendum, whether or not someone went to university Was a stronger indicator of how they might vote than gender, age, or class. The essays in this book, which are based on a series of talks given at the Central European University in Budapest, show a clear awareness of this fault line."

• IntroductionMichael IgnatieffPART I. The Open Society Ideal: For and AgainstA Conversation Between Mark Lilla and Michael IgnatieffMark Lilla and Michael IgnatieffThe Open Society from a Conservative PerspectiveRoger ScrutonEducating Skeptical but Passionate Citizens: The Open Society Ideal as a University MissionStefan Roch PART II. Open Society in Practice: Democracy, Rule of Law, Free Speech and SecularismDemocracy Defended and ChallengedThomas ChristianoFree Speech and the Defence of an Open SocietyTimothy Garton AshReligion in the Open SocietyTim CraneConstitutionalism in Closing SocietiesAndras Sajo PART III. Open Society in 21st Century GeopoliticsOpen Societies at Home and AbroadStephen WaltOpen Society and 21st century Globalization [Network Approach]Niall FergusonEurasia, Europe, and the Question of U.S. LeadershipRobert KaplanGermany and the Fate of Open Society in EuropeDaniela SchwarzerWar and Open SocietyMargaret MacMillan PART IV. Open Society’s New Enemies: The Authoritarian CompetitorsHow Can Populism Be Defeated?Jan-Werner MüllerBeyond Demagoguery? The Contemporary Crisis of Political CommunicationErica BennerPopulism and Democracy in Europe: History and TheoryPierre RosanvallonThe Enduring Appeal of the One-Party StateAnne Applebaum PART V. From Transition to Backsliding: Did Open Societies Fail?Capitalism and Democracy in East Central Europe: A Sequence of CrisesDorothee BohlePerhapsburg: Reflections on the Fragility and Resilience of EuropeIvan KrastevEuropean Divides: Crisis of Democracy, Nationhood, MulticulturalismJacques RupnikThe Open Society and the Problem of Corruption: Diagnosis and RemediesAlina Mungiu PippidiThe Political Economy of Open Society in East-Central Europe: Recent TrendsBéla Greskovits ConclusionMichael Ignatieff