The End Of History And The Last Man Summary

Shortly after the end of the cold war Francis Fukuyama wrote ‘ The End of History and the Last Man’(1992), within this publication Fukuyama provided a thesis proposing that liberal democracy had triumphed over other forms of government. While the thesis did not go as far as to suggest that all would subscribe to Liberal Democracy (at least in the short term) it did argue that not doing so was to be somewhat ‘backward’ as Liberal Democracy had proven itself as the last system of government, the one that was the ideal irrespective of opinion . Empirical evidence showed the Liberal Democracy was spreading and proclaimed those that did subscribe would find increasing peace and prosperity. This essay aims to challenge the thesis, and the notion that liberal democracy is something of a universal ideal , it is not though aiming to pull apart liberal democracy in and of itself. This will be done by looking at the role ideas play in shaping the

Many nations that had much power on the world stage such as the UK were heavily depleted by the effects of war and the USA and Russia found themselves as the two global superpowers. After initial hopes of harmony it became evident that both nations had contrasting views upon the best way of achieving this ‘good life’, the USA and other western nations believed in liberal democracy and of free markets , Russia of communism based upon ideas from Marxism whereby the state would intervene in an attempt to level the playing field . These opposing ideologies divided the world and provided the backdrop to what became known as the cold war, a war that was not fought directly but rather through proxy wars, propaganda and technological superiority to achieve power. (Open University,