Raymond Aron and His Dialogues in an Age of Ideologies examines the thought and rhetoric of the most interesting thinker of the twentieth century of whom no one has heard. This book investigates Raymond Aron’s conversations on politics during the Cold War with several of his more well-known interlocutors including Jean-Paul Sartre, Friedrich Hayek, and Charles de Gaulle. Through exploring these dialogues on the subjects of Marxism, freedom, and nationalism, we see the prudence of Aron’s politics of understanding as well as the emphasis he places on and virtue he demonstrates in public discourse. Through his dialogues, Aron shows us not only how to think politically but also how to engage in constructive public debate. He stands as a model for us to emulate in our own age of ideologies.

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In this lucid, thoughtful and elegantly written work, Nathan Orlando highlights the tough-minded moderation and dialogic wisdom of the great twentieth century French political thinker Raymond Aron. Whether responding to Jean-Paul Sartre’s incoherent efforts to merge existentialism and Marxism, authenticity and terror, or Friedrich Hayek’s thoughtful and humane, if too doctrinaire, defense of the ‘constitution of liberty,’ Aron embodied high prudence at work in the great drama of the twentieth century. And in his qualified admiration for the person and statecraft of Charles de Gaulle, Aron admirably demonstrated how moderation and political responsibility can and should fit together. Nathan Orlando is to be commended for bringing Aron’s model of humane and balanced political judgment to life once again. -Daniel J. Mahoney, Professor Emeritus at Assumption University and Author of The Liberal Political Science of Raymond Aron

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In Raymond Aron and His Dialogues in an Age of Ideologies, Nathan Orlando draws an original and compelling sketch of how the philosophical became the personal in the life and work of Raymond Aron. More specifically, Orlando puts flesh and bones on Aron’s concept of prudence and illustrates the ways in which prudence was a lodestar in Aron’s political and personal life, allowing him to navigate not only current events but the challenging personalities of friends and critics such as Jean-Paul Sartre, F.A. Hayek, and Charles de Gaulle. Raymond Aron and His Dialogues is a heroic accomplishment and a wonderful addition to the burgeoning literature on Raymond Aron. -Reed Davis, Professor Emeritus at Seattle Pacific University and Author of A Politics of Understanding: The International Thought of Raymond Aron