Is the Age of Enlightenment over, Francis Fukuyama?

Political scientist Francis Fukuyama explains why liberal democracy is under pressure—and why he nevertheless refuses to give up hope. In the ZEIT podcast »Nur eine Frage« ZEIT editor-in-chief Jochen Wegner asks simple but fundamental questions that concern many of us, questions to which clear answers are often difficult to find. We put them to the best expert we can find for the subject in question. Francis Fukuyama is one of the most important political theorists of our time. In the summer of 1989, just a few months before the fall of the Berlin Wall, he published the essay The End of History? and became famous almost overnight. In it, he argued that the decline of communism marked the end of humanity’s great ideological struggle and that Western liberal democracy would establish itself as the final form of government. The book that followed was translated into more than twenty languages. Since then, Fukuyama has written numerous books and analyses on history and the origins of political order, trust and identity, biotechnology, and the crisis of liberalism. He has advised American administrations, received the Johan Skytte Prize, and teaches at Stanford University. His new book, The Last Man, was published in Germany in June 2026. But what is the state of liberal democracy today—as a child of the Enlightenment? How much remains of the Enlightenment’s ideas and ideals? In this new episode of »Nur eine Frage«, we ask Francis Fukuyama: Is the Age of Enlightenment over? Fukuyama’s answer is: »No. The Age of Enlightenment is by no means over. It is under pressure, but it is definitely not over.« In the podcast, he first describes the historical background of the Enlightenment: how the scientific method displaced religious dogma and how liberal democracy emerged as one of the Enlightenment’s achievements. Fukuyama explains that a global democratic decline has been observable since 2008. He is particularly concerned by the rise of illiberal parties within established democracies. Above all, he considers developments in the United States since 2016 under Donald Trump to be the most significant change. For Fukuyama, Friedrich Nietzsche’s concept of the “last man” offers one explanation for these current developments—a figure who lives in prosperity and security but no longer aspires to anything higher. He explains why he explored this concept in his first book, The End of History (1992), and revisits it in his new book, The Last Man (2026). In the conversation, Fukuyama also explains how, in his view, the COVID-19 pandemic has undermined trust in public-health authorities and science. He discusses why he believes China has not developed a superior alternative to liberal democracy with its political model. He expresses concern about agentic AI and the temptation to give machines ever greater decision-making authority. He also answers the question of whether Germany’s social market economy could serve as a model for other countries. Despite everything, Fukuyama remains optimistic. The Age of Enlightenment is not over, he says, and we must work hard to ensure that its light does not go out. He urges us not to give up hope and to undertake the hard work of democratic politics, because only through democratic engagement can illiberal trends be reversed. 00:00:00 Intro 02:36:21 The Age of Enlightenment: Natural Science at the Core of the Human Project 04:16:06 Liberal Democracy: An Outcome of Enlightenment 08:35:00 The Crisis of Enlightenment: Executive Orders and Repressive Means in Illiberal Political Systems 11:45:20 Friedrich Nietzsche’s »Last Man« at the End of History 12:55:00 Peace and Prosperity: Why It Is Not a Given 16:15:04 Money and Power: The Decline of Western Civilization 20:53:15 Truth(s) by Likes: Pressure on Scientific Research 26:26:00 Does the Internet Kill Democracies? 30:19:18 China’s Rise: Is Its Liberal Economic Model Sustainable in the Long Run? 34:20:22 Do We Overcome Democratic Backsliding? 36:58:02 How Much Freedom Should Be Granted to the Enemies of Freedom? 40:35:05 Sapere Aude: Why We should Not Over-Delegate to AI 46:57:20 Outro Host: Jochen Wegner Editorial: Sophie Hübner Visual production: Michael Pfister Video production: Nele Vogel, Iona Young Production: ifbbw Visual director: Malin Schulz Photo director: Tina Ahrens Design: Adele Ogiermann, Jan Lichte Animation: Axel Rudolph Music: Konrad Peschmann Logo: Lea Dohle You can find all episodes of our podcast here: https://www.zeit.de/serie/nur-eine-fr... Questions, criticism, suggestions? Write to: [email protected] #enlightenment #democracy #liberal #politics