A Conflict of Visions

Ideological Origins of Political Struggles

By: Thomas Sowell

Narrated by: Michael Edwards

In this book, which the author calls a "culmination of 30 years of work in the history of ideas," Sowell attempts to explain the ideological difference between liberals and conservatives as a disagreement over the moral potential inherent in nature. Those who see that potential as limited prefer to constrain governmental authority, he argues. They feel that reform is difficult and often dangerous, and put their faith in family, custom, law, and traditional institutions. Conversely, those who have faith in human nature prefer to remove institutional and traditional constraints. Controversies over such diverse issues as criminal justice, income distribution, or war and peace repeatedly show an ideological divide along the lines of these two conflicting visions.©1987 Thomas Sowell (P)1988 Classics on Tape

Critic reviews

"Extraordinary....[Sowell] makes his case fairly, lucidly, and persuasively." (New York Times)
"A provocative analysis of the conflicting visions of human nature that have shaped the moral, legal and economic life of recent times....His discussion of how these conflicting attitudes ultimately produce clashes over equality, social justice and other issues is instructive."(Publishers Weekly)
"The book builds a convincing case that ethical and policy disputes are ultimately based on the differences in these visions. It covers a wide variety of political, philosophical, and economic thought...[A]n important contribution to our understanding of current social issues." (Library Journal)

Thought provoking

This is among the most thought-provoking book I have read (or rather heard this as an audiobook) of Thomas Sowell yet. He has provided a general philosophical framework in understanding the nature of political and ideological conflicts.

Very often we find the same set of people lie on the opposite side on issues, be it economic, legal, military, social issues, and numerous other unrelated issues. This according to Sowell isn't a mere coincidence, but because these groups are reasoning from fundamentally different premises and have different views on human nature. i.e They have different visions of how the world works.

He broadly classifies these visions into two namely, 'Constrained' and 'Unconstrained' vision. The constrained viewpoint believes human nature is inherently flawed and can never be perfect. Thus compromises in society must be made taking into account these human flaws(eg - free market). In the unconstrained viewpoint, you believe that humans are inherently good, and flaws are attributed to social conditioning (eg - Affirmative action). Thus believes, society has the potential to become perfect through constant restructuring. It's these conflicting viewpoints to various degree dictate so much of ideological battles.

Through Sowell's other work it's evident that he leans more to the 'Constrained' camp, but in this book, he explains the two visions from a neutral perspective and doesn't push his opinion.

Would strongly recommend this to anyone interested in politics and psychology. It can be a bit tedious to read, thus I would suggest the Audiobook version.

Outstanding book, TERRIBLE narrator

Truly great book that really allows the reader to know what it truly means to be a conservative (constrained) vs a liberal (unconstrained) with the underlying assumptions that lead to both stances. The narrator on the other hand was monotoned, terrible and boring which really did not do justice to such an outstanding book. I would recommend reading the book as opposed to listening to this audio version.

Excellent

great read and I would highly recommend it, still very relevant to the problems we face today and how they are being dealt handled with everything going on around the world

Brilliant book mediocre narrator

Fascinating, seminal book by Thomas Sowell. Unfortunately the narrator is robotic and does not do the work justice.

Thomas Sowell Day!

Another great work by a great mind of our time. Within my lifetime, it would be nice to celebrate a man as great as Thomas Sowell.

an important book

Sowell provides one of the best explanations for why people are divided into left and right.

Best explanation of what divides us

This is the first and only book I know of which explains why, liberals and conservatives, can't seem to agree on Anything! Profound. Insightful. Well researched and documented. Thomas Sowell should be recognized as one of the great Thinkers of the last 100 years.

Good points.

Sowell is a thinker, although I don’t agree with some of the time. He makes us think about all aspects of the visions.

Thought provoking

Thomas Sowell's writings are always intelligent and thought provoking. His grasp of economics surpasses all other current authors on this topic, and his understanding of current society comes from his understanding of history and human nature. His books are never boring even when discussing economics.

That said, "A Conflict of Visions" isn't about right or left; just as there are big-government Democrats, there are big government Republicans. This book is about the constrained and unconstrained visions of how the world works.

Listen to it, and you may just gain some insights into yourself.

Very Insightful

I was surprised to find that this book was written in 1987. It remains so relevant that it might as well have been written yesterday. On a personal level, it helped me understand why family members who share most of the same values I do nevertheless diverge so far when it comes to political practicalities. I can see why Dr. Sowell regards it as one of the intellectual works he is most proud of.