Liberalism and the Global South

In this episode, I read from Pankaj Mishra’s Bland Fanatics, a searing critique of liberalism and its reception beyond the West. Mishra explores how, across much of the Global South, liberalism is not the triumphant, self-evident good it is often assumed to be in Euro-American discourse, but instead a system bound up with histories of empire, inequality, and cultural dislocation. Through his lens, we examine why the liberal ideal — so celebrated in Western political thought — can appear hollow, or even complicit, when viewed from societies still shaped by colonialism and its aftermath.Newsflash: You can find everything Explaining History on Substack, join free hereHelp the podcast to continue bringing you history each weekIf you enjoy the Explaining History podcast and its many years of content and would like to help the show continue, please consider supporting it in the following ways:If you want to go ad-free, you can take out a membership hereOrYou can support the podcast via Patreon hereOr you can just say some nice things about it hereExplaining History helps you understand the 20th Century through critical conversations and expert interviews. We connect the past to the present. If you enjoy the show, please subscribe and share.▸ Support the Show & Get Exclusive ContentBecome a Patron: patreon.com/explaininghistory▸ Join the Community & Continue the ConversationFacebook Group: facebook.com/groups/ExplainingHistoryPodcastSubstack: theexplaininghistorypodcast.substack.com▸ Read Articles & Go DeeperWebsite: explaininghistory.org Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.