Arts & Ideas Influencing History
Dec 5, 2025
Anne Applebaum, a Pulitzer Prize-winning historian, discusses the traits of modern autocrats and their reliance on societal consent. Selina Todd critiques the 'great man' narrative, emphasizing the relational power of class. Clare Jackson highlights the limited power of historical monarchs, while Jake Subryan Richards explores the complexities of abolition and the agency of liberated Africans. Rupert Read underscores the role of networks in climate action and advocates for counterfactual thinking to inspire collective action. Together, they ponder whether individuals or structures shape history.
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Modern Autocrats Rule By Personalized Law
- Anne Applebaum defines modern autocrats as rulers who remove checks, transparency and the rule of law.
- She says modern autocrats seek to rule by law as the ruler dictates and deny rights altogether.
Authoritarian Ideas Travel Via Copying
- Authoritarians form networks by copying tactics, narratives and methods rather than formal meetings.
- They share use of offshore finance, propaganda memes, and experimentation to spread authoritarianism.
Ritual Masked Weak Early Modern Power
- Claire Jackson says even 'absolute' monarchs like James I depended on consent and a weak state infrastructure.
- Ritual and rhetoric projected power while real authority rested on local officeholders and networks.
