The Enlightenment's legacy is under siege. Defend it.

But first, you have to understand the strongest arguments of your ideological opponents

Jean Jacques Rousseau
(Image credit: Classic Image / Alamy Stock Photo)

The many anti-globalist politicians, parties, and movements roiling the politics of Western liberal democracies can be understood in many ways. But the most fruitful may be to view them as the latest representatives of an old tradition of opposition to the 18th-century Enlightenment and its legacy to our world.

The Enlightenment legacy can be seen all around us: individualism, international commerce and trade, moral cosmopolitanism, freedom of the press and a culture of publicity, technological modernity, the valorization of expertise, and on and on.

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Damon Linker

Damon Linker is a senior correspondent at TheWeek.com. He is also a former contributing editor at The New Republic and the author of The Theocons and The Religious Test.