Thomas Sowell's "extraordinary" explication of the competing visions
of human nature lie at the heart of our political conflicts (New York
Times)
Controversies in politics arise from many sources, but the conflicts
that endure for generations or centuries show a remarkably consistent
pattern. In this classic work, Thomas Sowell analyzes this pattern. He
describes the two competing visions that shape our debates about the
nature of reason, justice, equality, and power: the "constrained"
vision, which sees human nature as unchanging and selfish, and the
"unconstrained" vision, in which human nature is malleable and
perfectible. A Conflict of Visions offers a convincing case that
ethical and policy disputes circle around the disparity between both
outlooks.