History

Victor Navasky in 1962.

Victor Navasky: An Avatar of the American Left, 1932–2023 Victor Navasky: An Avatar of the American Left, 1932–2023

Editor of The Nation, 1978–1995; editorial director and publisher, 1995–2005.

Jan 27, 2023 / Obituary / Kai Bird

Then–Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama in Mitchell, S.D.

What Does It Take to Win? What Does It Take to Win?

In his new history of American politics, Timothy Shenk examines the past and future of political realignments.

Jan 24, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Kim Phillips-Fein

In a Land of Apartheid, a Trip to the Beach Can Be an Act of Resistance

In a Land of Apartheid, a Trip to the Beach Can Be an Act of Resistance In a Land of Apartheid, a Trip to the Beach Can Be an Act of Resistance

Not long ago, The Nation’s Palestine correspondent snuck into a moshav to sunbathe, because no one owns the sea.

Jan 23, 2023 / Mohammed El-Kurd

Was the True Meaning of Capitalism Forgotten?

Was the True Meaning of Capitalism Forgotten? Was the True Meaning of Capitalism Forgotten?

A conversation with historian Michael Sonenscher about the tricky task of defining capitalism and his new book, Capitalism: The Story Behind the Word. 

Jan 18, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Daniel Steinmetz-Jenkins

Merrick Garland at press conference

Why Biden and Trump Are Both Trapped in Secret-Document Scandals Why Biden and Trump Are Both Trapped in Secret-Document Scandals

The real problem is the national security state’s love of classification.

Jan 17, 2023 / Jeet Heer

Trump on a screen during the January 6 hearings

The Failures of the January 6 Report The Failures of the January 6 Report

Historian Jill Lepore’s effective critique in The New Yorker is marred by a lazy counternarrative.

Jan 13, 2023 / Jeet Heer

A black and white photo of a young Hannah Arendt lounging.

Hannah Arendt Was Really a Prophet Against Conformity Hannah Arendt Was Really a Prophet Against Conformity

To the question of how totalitarian methods could ever draw the compliance of free citizens, she replied: through the enchantment of success.

Jan 9, 2023 / Column / David Bromwich

Will Alexander’s Epics of the Surreal

Will Alexander’s Epics of the Surreal Will Alexander’s Epics of the Surreal

As one critic put it, his poetry conjured up a world built by “an ecstatic surrealist on imaginal hyperdrive.” 

Jan 5, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Aditya Bahl

Has the United States Ever Been a Democracy?

Has the United States Ever Been a Democracy? Has the United States Ever Been a Democracy?

Blending history, political theory, and commentary on current events, Jedediah Purdy's new book examines how that the United States continues to fail to qualify as a system defined...

Jan 3, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Sophia Rosenfeld

Apocalypse No! Pseudo-Archaeology, Ancient Tech-Lords, and Ordinary People.

Apocalypse No! Pseudo-Archaeology, Ancient Tech-Lords, and Ordinary People. Apocalypse No! Pseudo-Archaeology, Ancient Tech-Lords, and Ordinary People.

Why the Netflix series Ancient Apocalypse is worth taking seriously. Hint: It’s not the science.

Dec 22, 2022 / David Wengrow

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