The Making of Modern Liberalism

Published Jan. 21, 2016

(Princeton University Press) This collection of essays spans decades, but is unified by the main themes of the liberal political tradition: freedom, individual rights, toleration, and the connections between work, property, and freedom among them. It sets present day attachments against the attachments of the sharpest thinkers of earlier ages, such as Hobbes, Locke, and Mill. Alan Ryan has taught political theory at Oxford and Princeton since 1969, and written multiple books on the history of political thought.

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The October 2025 cover of PAW, featuring an illustration of a woman dressed like Superman, but the S on her chest is a dollar sign.
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October 2025

Philanthropist MacKenzie Scott ’92; President Eisgruber ’83 defends higher ed; Julia Ioffe ’05 explains Russia.