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The Road to Serfdom

4.17 of 5 stars 4.17 · rating details · 5,887 ratings · 459 reviews

A classic work in political philosophy, intellectual and cultural history, and economics, The Road to Serfdom has inspired and infuriated politicians, scholars, and general readers for half a century. Originally published in England in the spring of 1944—when Eleanor Roosevelt supported the efforts of Stalin, and Albert Einstein subscribed lock, stock, and barrel to the so...more A classic work in political philosophy, intellectual and cultural history, and economics, The Road to Serfdom has inspired and infuriated politicians, scholars, and general readers for half a century. Originally published in England in the spring of 1944—when Eleanor Roosevelt supported the efforts of Stalin, and Albert Einstein subscribed lock, stock, and barrel to the socialist program—The Road to Serfdom was seen as heretical for its passionate warning against the dangers of state control over the means of production. For F. A. Hayek, the collectivist idea of empowering government with increasing economic control would inevitably lead not to a utopia but to the horrors of nazi Germany and fascist Italy.

First published by the University of Chicago Press on September 18, 1944, The Road to Serfdom garnered immediate attention from the public, politicians, and scholars alike. The first printing of 2,000 copies was exhausted instantly, and within six months more than 30,000 were sold. In April of 1945, Reader's Digest published a condensed version of the book, and soon thereafter the Book-of-the-Month Club distributed this condensation to more than 600,000 readers. A perennial best-seller, the book has sold over a quarter of a million copies in the United States, not including the British edition or the nearly twenty translations into such languages as German, French, Dutch, Swedish, and Japanese, and not to mention the many underground editions produced in Eastern Europe before the fall of the iron curtain.

After thirty-two printings in the United States, The Road to Serfdom has established itself alongside the works of Alexis de Tocqueville, John Stuart Mill, and George Orwell for its timeless meditation on the relation between individual liberty and government authority. This fiftieth anniversary edition, with a new introduction by Milton Friedman, commemorates the enduring influence of The Road to Serfdom on the ever-changing political and social climates of the twentieth century, from the rise of socialism after World War II to the Reagan and Thatcher "revolutions" in the 1980s and the transitions in Eastern Europe from communism to capitalism in the 1990s.

F. A. Hayek (1899-1992), recipient of the Medal of Freedom in 1991 and co-winner of the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economics in 1974, was a pioneer in monetary theory and the principal proponent of libertarianism in the twentieth century.

On the first American edition of The Road to Serfdom:
"One of the most important books of our generation. . . . It restates for our time the issue between liberty and authority with the power and rigor of reasoning with which John Stuart Mill stated the issue for his own generation in his great essay On Liberty. . . . It is an arresting call to all well-intentioned planners and socialists, to all those who are sincere democrats and liberals at heart to stop, look and listen."—Henry Hazlitt, New York Times Book Review, September 1944

"In the negative part of Professor Hayek's thesis there is a great deal of truth. It cannot be said too often—at any rate, it is not being said nearly often enough—that collectivism is not inherently democratic, but, on the contrary, gives to a tyrannical minority such powers as the Spanish Inquisitors never dreamt of."—George Orwell, Collected Essays(less)

Paperback, Fiftieth Anniversary Edition, 320 pages

Published October 15th 1994 by University Of Chicago Press (first published 1944)

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Feb 13, 2013 Camille rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: economics, history

This book captures the frustration of classical liberals (as opposed to modern liberals) when they see collectivist policies enacted despite the overwhelming evidence that socialism brings about disastrous results.

Having grown up and lived in Austria during World War I and later moving to Great Britain, Hayek was particularly frustrated when he saw Britain and the United States making the same mistakes of the Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union. Hayek argues that collectivism eventually leads to t...more

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Sep 09, 2007 Howard Olsen rated it 5 of 5 stars

Finally got around to reading this libertarian/conservative classic. It's short, but deep, combining economics, politics, sociology, and a short history of Socialist thought, to create the greatest critique of the collectivist impulse that you can read. Hayek's message is blunt: despite the freedom and liberality that is western man's birthright, there is an inevitable clamor for order and equality that arises from the intellligensia and the wealthy. This clamor leads to the demand-often in the...more

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Mar 22, 2012 Mike (the Paladin) rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The temptation here will be to try and say too much. This is a short book, though it is thickly packed. I won't try to relate here what the author relates in the book. I will try to say a few words about the book and recommend it.

This is the same book that was released in England in 1944, but it is a new edition and thus has a new intro by the author. If you can get this edition I recommend it for the intro. This book was written during (near the end of)WWII and thus will be in some ways a bit d...more The temptation here will be to try and say too much. This is a short book, though it is thickly packed. I won't try to relate here what the author relates in the book. I will try to say a few words about the book and recommend it.

This is the same book that was released in England in 1944, but it is a new edition and thus has a new intro by the author. If you can get this edition I recommend it for the intro. This book was written during (near the end of)WWII and thus will be in some ways a bit dated. This is not in all ways a bad thing. The author expresses an opinion that the central idea argued against in this book is no longer the main threat to "liberty" or "freedom". This he states as "hot socialism". It might also be called overt socialism. He feels this has been superseded by more subtle forms. I think however this is not totally so. I also think That if read with an open mind the reader will see in action many of the things the author warns of as possibilities I'll probably mention one or two as examples below.

A main reason I recommend that you find the newer edition and read the intro is language. Words mean things and words change meaning. It must be remembered that this book is not only aimed at the English, it's aimed at citizens of England in the early and middle twentieth century. In America today the word "conservative" means to most who consider themselves conservatives the conservation of the rule of law and the individual rights laid out in the U.S. Constitution. Historically conservatism has referred to the preservation or conservation of the special rights, powers and privileges of a ruling class. Today in Russia the word conservative means those who wish to conserve the Soviet system (a fact which appealed greatly to some news people in America who were of the politically left persuasion. At the time of and just after the fall of the Soviet Union they seemed to love referring to the Communist party in Russia as the conservatives). So, in this book when Dr. Hayek uses the word "conservative" this school of thought would actually be much closer to socialism and what he refers to as "collectivist thought" than otherwise.

By the same token the "Liberal" today in America tends to mean those who are of a socialist bent. Not so here. The author is using the word in the European, historical way, as in "nineteenth century liberal thought". Dr. Hayek wonders in his intro why Americans Libertarians have allowed the loss of this word to the political left (and indeed have actually begun using it). He believed that it was an essential word for the arguments. When in this book Dr. Hayek uses the word "liberal" and the phrase "liberal thought" the position he's referring to is much closer to American conservatism than liberalism.

There are other ideas and words that will be slightly different or even new to some. Understanding of language is very important here.

In the book's discussion of the world much that is current to WWII will be in the forefront but the ideas are still applicable. His discussion of (for example) the "rule of law" is universal. America was set up under "the rule of law". Our legislature is constrained by our Constitution as to what new laws it can pass and what actions it can take by laws and rules laid out establishing the nation and said legislature. The rule of law is in a very real sense all that stands between any people and despotic and/or totalitarian rule. (Side note, this past year an American legislator said that congress could pass any law it wished with no restriction. This past week the President of the U.S. signed a law that "at least says" the American military can detain any person without warrant, charge or attorney. No Habeas Corpus, apparently no recourse... Yesterday he made an illegal appointment claiming the Senate was in recess, yet the Senate isn't in recess. This is not the rule of law and it will be "more than interesting" to see if it's allowed. If so, we're in trouble.).

I recommend this one. While it isn't the easiest book it's not really difficult either. It simply requires a bit of thought (and willingness to think of course) and understanding of what the author is saying. (less)

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Jan 30, 2013 William rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: economics-classical

Hayek, an Austrian who moved to Britain in the 1930s, sounded as clear a set of warnings in 1944 against the dangers of creeping socialism as Alexis de Tocqueville had done in France 100 years previously. Hayek saw the danger for Britain contained in the Fabian socialism of H.G. Wells et al. based on how the welfare programs begun in Germany under Bismarck led to the disaster of "national socialism" under Hitler.

De Toqueville had seen the same trends in France in the early 1800s, when he warned...more

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Feb 05, 2009 James rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: great-books-group, economics, favorites, philosophy, read-and-reread

This is one of the foundational books for my personal philosophy. Along with his other works, the thought of Friedrich von Hayek is basic to my own indivdualist world view. In this book Hayek contends that liberty is fragile, easily harmed but seldom extinguished in one fell swoop. Instead, over the years “the unforeseen but inevitable consequences of socialist planning create a state of affairs in which, if the policy is to be pursued, totalitarian forces will get the upper hand.” He asserts th...more

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May 21, 2012 Brittany rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: politics, theory, school, economics, nonfiction

The historical analysis upon which this book depends amounts to nothing more than extremely poor scholarship masquerading as thoughtful contrarianism. Hayek's conflation of Nazism with Socialism merely because they have similar names in German is an example of stupidity on the level of mistaking the PATRIOT Act for patriotism or the Ministry of Peace for peacefulness. This distracting error is unfortunately the foundation of the entirety of his argument. His theory of authoritarianism consists o...more

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Dec 16, 2007 Chris Wells rated it 4 of 5 stars

If "compassionate conservatism" means anything, than it surely means something like this. Hayek's thought no longer qualifies as hardcore libertarian because he believed in government welfare programs, albeit limited ones, as supplementary to the free market system for those unable to participate in it. Central planning was what he was really against, and he has a very convincing argument against putting economic planning in the hands of any government, no matter how benevolent it may seem to be...more

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Apr 06, 2009 Clif rated it 4 of 5 stars

Friedrich A. Hayek was a member of the Austrian School of economics. We've heard about that school in recent times because Milton Friedman advocated many of the ideas the school expressed, primarily the freedom to choose provided by a free market.

This book is a warning to England, written during the closing days of World War II, that the policies of socialism being advocated at the time were the same policies Hayek has seen in Germany 20 years before.

On first thought, one would wonder how social...more Friedrich A. Hayek was a member of the Austrian School of economics. We've heard about that school in recent times because Milton Friedman advocated many of the ideas the school expressed, primarily the freedom to choose provided by a free market.

This book is a warning to England, written during the closing days of World War II, that the policies of socialism being advocated at the time were the same policies Hayek has seen in Germany 20 years before.

On first thought, one would wonder how socialism could be harmful. Isn't it all about spreading the wealth and trying to create a fair allocation of resources to all?

In theory, this is true, but in application it would mean planning from above and the suppression of individual desires for the "common good". This planning would gradually extend into every nook and cranny of society as control and direction would be paramount. This contest between individual freedom and the supposed good of society as a whole extends back to Plato and was greatly developed by John Locke (for individual freedom or "natural law") and Thomas Hobbes (for the good of society and the control of individuals in his Leviathan

Hayek's writing is concise and illustrates how Nazi (National Socialist) Germany is the best example of the willing, in fact, enthusiastic, surrender of the self to the nation. He pleads with us to value the rule of law and to accept that it is a result of our laws protecting the individual that society cannot be given a direction but must move unpredictably into the future. (he avoids a critique of the USSR as it was an ally of England at the time of writing). He denies that the developments in Germany were simply a product of WWI or Hitler. The mindset was being built for many decades, exemplified by the admiration of the dedicated and obedient public servant in Germany along with the mystic elevation of the nation as almost a deity for which the individual should eagerly sacrifice all.

As important a read today as it was in 1944, The Road to Serfdom is a reminder that we must trade our freedom if we choose to prize security above all. The two cannot be had in equal measure, one must be sacrificed for the other. The best solution, in Hayek's view, is the protection of our right to be treated equally under the law; that it must be blind. No perfect justice can be achieved, but with individual freedom intact we are best armed for the pursuit of what justice is possible.(less)

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Sep 23, 2010 Marcus rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: capitalists and socialists

Shelves: economics, non-fiction, political-philosophy

The Road to Serfdom is not an anti-government book, it's definitely not a libertarian or pro-laissez-faire capitalism or even a pro-democracy book. It's purely and simply an anti-socialism book. And, just to be clear, to Hayek, socialism primarily means central-planning. It's chapter after chapter of reasons why socialism, despite it's apparently noble goals, both will not work in the practical sense, and how it tends to lead to totalitarianism.

Hayek's arguments are level-headed and logical. He...more

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Oct 06, 2011 Andrea rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: democracy, theory

Hayek is a huge figure in economics and of immense influence on neoliberalism, and reading this I was struck by just how deeply and completely neoliberalism goes as a theoretical framework. I know many would not agree with that (though many would), but Thatcher claimed him as her own and that is enough for me. There are also those conversations in the Mount Pelerin Society with Milton Friedman. It fascinates me that this resonance is true not just of the ideas, but also in the way language is us...more

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Oct 29, 2011 Aurochz rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: austrian-econ-market-anarchism, economics, history

Not my personal favorite book or work of Hayek's that I have read, but definitely his most popular and most influential work. An altogether great outline of how the level of economic freedom or decentralization shows how fast or slow a country can reach generally high levels of totalitarianism. I struggled in my conception of this review on whether I should review it on the merits of its lasting endurance or the importance of the book in its original historical context. I decided to do both sepa...more

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Aug 24, 2007 Ben rated it 5 of 5 stars

A rousing defense of personal and economic liberty and individualism over the guiles of collectivism and its ultimate form totalitarianism -- appropriate for its time, appropriate now.

Communism = Fascism.

Theme: "What has always made the state a hell on earth has been precisely that man has tried to make it his heaven." (F. Hoelderlin.)

"As in the course of the progressive advance towards socialism it becomes more and more evident to everybody that his income and general position is determined by...more

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Jun 19, 2009 Erich Franz Guzmann rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: People striving for freedom/politicians

Shelves: 1940s, klassiker, historische, libere, non-fiction, politik, favourite, crime, kultur, economic, bibliothēca, meisterwerk, sociology

Friedrich August von Hayek wanted to create a country that is worth dying for. He wrote The Road to Serfdom and in doing so had greatly influenced several government leaders with one of them being Ronald Reagan. Hayek’s Classical Liberal and laissez-faire ideology is put brilliantly in this book. He writes perfectly how socialism and a collectivist governments will only lead to tyranny.

I believe this world would be a better place if more politicians read his work and actually took it to heart. F...more

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May 18, 2013 JP rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

A masterpiece of classical liberal thought, Hayek's book should be read by every member of the target audience to which he dedicated the work ("To Socialists of All Parties"). In the preface to one of the earlier editions, he mentions the invective directed toward him by allegedly open-minded intellectuals of his time. He modified little between each edition but did update the preface to reflect the most recent times. Milton Friedman wrote the introduction to the 50th anniversary edition. In the...more A masterpiece of classical liberal thought, Hayek's book should be read by every member of the target audience to which he dedicated the work ("To Socialists of All Parties"). In the preface to one of the earlier editions, he mentions the invective directed toward him by allegedly open-minded intellectuals of his time. He modified little between each edition but did update the preface to reflect the most recent times. Milton Friedman wrote the introduction to the 50th anniversary edition. In the 1956 preface, Hayek talks about the attention the National Planning Board gave to the progressive social policies in Italy and Germany 10 years before Fascism attempted to take over all of Europe. Hayek does a superlative job of showing the contradictory result in creating state monopolies to limit the negative effects of private monopolies. He demonstrates that competition is needed most when the business and interactions are most complex, because any monopoly - and especially a state monopoly - cannot adequately plan. [return][return]Differentiating himself from the anarchist form of libertarian, he argues the importance of Rule of Law: "Nothing distinguishes more clearly conditions in a free country from those in a country under arbitrary government than the observance in the former of the great principles known as the Rule of Law. Stripped of all technicalities, this means that government in all its actions is bound by rules fixed and announced beforehand -- rules which make it possible to foresee with fair certainty how the authority will use its coercive powers in given circumstances and to plan one's individual affairs on the basis of knowledge... Within the known rules of the game the individual is free to pursue his personal ends and desires, certain that the powers of government will not be used deliberately to frustrate his efforts." (p. 80)[return][return]Hayek also discusses the meaning of "truth" and how it becomes something to be defined by government under totalitarianism, rather than something each individual seeks for themselves. The resulting culture is one of cynicism and irrationality: "Individualism is thus an attitude of humility before the social process and of tolerance to other opinions and is the exact opposite of that intellectual hubris which is at the root of the demand for comprehensive direction in social process." (p. 182)[return][return]It would be hard to read this and not see troubling parallels in today's general trend toward authoritarianism.(less)

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Mar 03, 2010 Sally Morem added it · review of another edition Recommends it for: Everyone

Recommended to Sally by: conservative friends

This is one of the books that has most influenced my thinking on economics and political philosophy. Hayek wrote this book during World War II, when it seemed that the world was falling into a permanent dark age of statism. It was his lonely voice in the wilderness that reminded Americans of what they were actually fighting for--the preservation of a truly free society with high respect for individuals and free institutions.

I've learned so much from this book. How alike socialism and fascism wer...more

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Jan 24, 2009 Bob Myer rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Hayek offers what may be the definitive defense of Western classical liberalism and the free-market economy. First published in 1944, it necessarily focuses on the evolution of socialistic doctrines and how they lead to totalitarian regimes. As a premise to his work, Hayek assumes that by definition socialistic governments are ones which attempt to use central planning of economic activities. As a result, socialism necessarily limits the individual freedom and liberty of citizens through dictati...more

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May 09, 2013 Robert rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I was expecting more of an economic argument, but eventually got over my disappointment in what is mostly a straight-forward argument against central planning. Hayek clarifies that his use of "socialist" throughout the book is in regards to the economics of central planning, and his main argument is that the political consequences of central planning are undesirable and evil.

It is interesting to me that Hayek is not at all the free market puritan that he is made out to be across the political s...more

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Apr 05, 2013 BirdBrian's ghost rated it 5 of 5 stars

Utopia
It’s never too early to start planning for summer vacation. This year, I’ve decided I want to go to Utopia. I’ve heard many good things about it: there’s no crime, pollution, or disease. It’s very clean and well-maintained. In fact, it is ideal in every imaginable way. Sir Thomas More tells us that Utopia doesn't exist; it's “nowhere”, but I refuse to believe this. A simple search on teh interwebs revealed quite a few utopias to choose from:

1) How about that domed city in Logon’s Run? We s...more

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Apr 04, 2013 Rick Wayne rated it 3 of 5 stars

As all the previous reviewers of this book have noted, this is an historic and notable work. But as Hayek himself clearly says in the introduction (and in his now famous dedication of the book "to the socialists of all parties"), he wrote it specifically for early to mid-20th Century British labour enthusiasts to counter their preoccupation with central economic planning. As such, Hayek's thesis, that a socialist, centrally directed (Soviet-style) economy leads to oppression, either of the commu...more As all the previous reviewers of this book have noted, this is an historic and notable work. But as Hayek himself clearly says in the introduction (and in his now famous dedication of the book "to the socialists of all parties"), he wrote it specifically for early to mid-20th Century British labour enthusiasts to counter their preoccupation with central economic planning. As such, Hayek's thesis, that a socialist, centrally directed (Soviet-style) economy leads to oppression, either of the communist or fascist kind, is now largely taken for granted, not least because history has borne out his argument in large measure. So, if you are interested in 20th Century history, particularly western culture's thankfully brief flirtations with socialism at the extremes, then this book will be an excellent historical primary source.

As many authors and journalists have noted since the fall of the Soviet Empire, we are now all capitalists of some kind or another, and so while this book is an expert exposition on the dangers of central economic planning, it does not address the key issues in the current debate over the precise role of central government. Hayek is attacking central economic planning - the direction of when to sow and when to reap, in Jefferson's phrase - not central administration. Hayek is a libertarian, not an anarchist. Like Milton Friedman's "neighborhood effects", Hayek finds valid roles for central action (as distinct from purely economic planning) in regulating the actions of individuals and companies that are "harmful to the public welfare". For instance, in Chapter 5 of the book, Hayek rightly dispels the myth that monopolies inevitably result from the streamlining effects of technology, and replaces that fallacy with two valid reasons for their development: government protection and price collusion. Thus, Hayek recommends replacing public monopolies with strong anti-trust in support of the competitive price system. That would seem to be a valid role for government.

As the author himself points out in the retrospective introduction to the 50th Anniversary edition, he originally saw this text as nothing more than diversion from his "more academic work", rather than as what it became - the first in a long and distinguished line of libertarian ideology. I do not point any of this out - that the book is a fine but dated critique of extreme central economic planning - to disparage the book, but I find that "The Road to Serfdom" is often quoted next to works of extreme parochialism and is done so to carry an ideological argument farther afield than this fine work can support.

Of course, the best recommendation is always this: read it and decide for yourself.(less)

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Mar 24, 2013 Eric rated it 1 of 5 stars

This book is wrong-headed and mistaken--not in its diagnosis (that freedom is threatened by centralized control of economies) but in every other particular. 1) Market economies are not exempt from this dynamic. Planning is planning, whether it is done to achieve justice and economic equality (or to keep pace with Western economic ability to manufacture armaments), as was true of the Soviet Union, or whether its done in an attempt to manage the increasingly unmanageable ecological footprint of ou...more

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Mar 15, 2013 Andrew Hill rated it 3 of 5 stars

1. While I'm sure 70 years ago this book went against the grain of many of the "intelligentsia", today it is a bit dated. The entire book is focused on discussing why market economies are better than planned economies - which no sane person would argue against today.

2. However dated, it is good to understand some of the history of economic and political thought from a classical liberal. Good read for informed citizens

3. Even though his thoughts are interesting and his overall values I personall...more

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Jan 06, 2013 Kat1979 rated it 3 of 5 stars

It's been so long since I've read this that my review will be practically useless. It was recommended to me by like-minded friends who prefer the classic definition of freedom and see that disappearing. But about a third of the way through I go so annoying that I started writing in the book; by the end I threw it out.

Hayek is liberal, I'm conservative-libertarian. I had hoped for a little hysterics over totalitarian regimes, passion for freedom. The least I can say, a couple years later, is tha...more

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Oct 09, 2012 Jim rated it 3 of 5 stars

two main points that i found fascinating:

1. hayek, the patron saint of market-fetishist conservatives, has incredibly little to say that is relevant to our modern economic/political discourse. hayek offers an effective critique of central economic planning — the focus of this work. when, as he does upon occasion, go a step further to make broad theoretical arguments for market-based solutions and against government-based solutions, his arguments are considerably weaker - anecdote, ad hominem and...more

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Oct 02, 2012 Lisa (Harmonybites) rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: history, libertarian, non-fiction, philosophy, political

I recently saw an edition of this book citing Glen Beck on the back cover and claiming it was an inspiration for the Tea Party. I couldn't help wincing at what the reaction of many potential readers would be to that. For Hayek, a Nobel-Prize winning economist, doesn't deserve to be dismissed with a sneer by those on the other side of the political divide. Hayek dedicated the book to "socialists of all parties" and said in the 1957 Preface to the American edition that was meant "in no spirit of m...more I recently saw an edition of this book citing Glen Beck on the back cover and claiming it was an inspiration for the Tea Party. I couldn't help wincing at what the reaction of many potential readers would be to that. For Hayek, a Nobel-Prize winning economist, doesn't deserve to be dismissed with a sneer by those on the other side of the political divide. Hayek dedicated the book to "socialists of all parties" and said in the 1957 Preface to the American edition that was meant "in no spirit of mockery" and that the ideas in the book were honed by arguments and discussion with socialists, and above all directed to them; he believed "socialism can be put into practice only by methods which most socialists disapprove." Indeed, in that Preface he was scornful of conservatism, which, he wrote, "in its paternalistic, nationalistic and power-adoring tendencies... is often closer to socialism than true liberalism; and with its traditionalistic, anti-intellectual, and often mystical propensities it will never, except in short periods of disillusionment, appeal to the young and all those others who believe that some changes are desirable if this world is to become a better place."

Mind you, right at the start, Hayek admits: "This is a political book." Published in 1944, the book's kernel began as a 1938 journal article inspired by a common conception that the National Socialists in Germany were a capitalist reaction to socialism: Hayek believed they were a natural outgrowth of it. In a way, Hayek's argument has lost a lot of power simply through its own success. Most people today, I think, see the connections between the two extremes of the political spectrum and don't have to be convinced of the similarities between say, Soviet Russia and Nazi Germany.

The heart of the book, and to me of most interest, was the twelfth chapter, "The Socialist Roots of Nazism." Hayek cautioned against seeing Nazism as rising from a German character--that would be to adopt many of the assumptions of Nazism itself. He points out that it "It overlooks the fact that, when eighty years ago John Stuart Mill was writing his great essay On Liberty, he drew his inspiration, more than from any other men, from two Germans—-Goethe and Wilhelm von Humboldt—-and forgets the fact that two of the most influential intellectual forebears of National Socialism—-Thomas Carlyle and Houston Stewart Chamberlain—-were a Scot and an Englishman." A lot of the intellectual history presented in that chapter was new to me and thought provoking.

This book isn't easy reading--truly this is the opposite of some simplistic populist bromide. It's highly abstract, erudite, sophisticated and nuanced and not what you might expect given it's characterization as a polemic of the right wing. The third chapter, "Individualism and Collectivism" discusses what Hayek saw as limitations of the market and its ninth chapter, "Security and Freedom" even concedes the need for a welfare state. It's timely and timeless and surprisingly modern in its tone. Parts are a slog to be honest, but I think it's worth pushing through and thinking about. (less)

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Sep 30, 2012 Ryan rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: nonfic-economics

Don’t let the Glenn Beck endorsement fool you; this might not be the book you were expecting. The Road to Serfdom is not a utopian view of capitalism as a solution to every problem, nor is it an anti-government manifesto. Rather, the book articulates a set of cautionary arguments against the temptations of collectivism, which might promise a more just or efficient world, but delegates to a central authority the power to decide exactly what “just” and “efficient” mean. In Hayek’s view, the devil...more Don’t let the Glenn Beck endorsement fool you; this might not be the book you were expecting. The Road to Serfdom is not a utopian view of capitalism as a solution to every problem, nor is it an anti-government manifesto. Rather, the book articulates a set of cautionary arguments against the temptations of collectivism, which might promise a more just or efficient world, but delegates to a central authority the power to decide exactly what “just” and “efficient” mean. In Hayek’s view, the devil is in the details, and rarely does any distant authority have the information to set an array of prices, wages, production quotas, job assignments, and incentives in a way that’s fair and functional. The more control the central authority assumes over the economy, the less responsive and transparent its micromanagement becomes, leaving many citizens frustrated and lacking motivation (as anyone who’s ever dealt with any kind of massive bureaucracy can imagine). As political unrest grows, the authority will find itself in a position where it either has to relinquish control, or clamp down on freedoms (think of the line from the classic Who song: "...and the party on the left is now the party on the right").

Generally, I found Hayek’s arguments carefully thought-out and sensible, responding to the views of his opponents without dismissing their concerns, intelligence, or good intentions (a feature of the book that seems to have been lost on people like Glenn Beck). As a moderate liberal, I would agree that fairly structured free markets work well enough for many things, allowing most people to meet their own needs and to pursue at least some of their wants. What works just fine shouldn’t be discarded in a quest to fix what doesn’t.

But, of course, the magic word is “most” (assuming it isn’t “some”). Hayek does acknowledge that free markets aren’t a panacea, and recognizes the need for social safety nets, public education, a minimum wage, anti-exploitation laws, consumer protection laws, environmental laws, and other features of modern liberal democracies. His concern isn’t so much that the government might set regulations or provide public services, but that it do so without destroying the benefits of a competitive system or giving some interest group special advantages over others. He also argues against state-sponsored business monopolies, an indictment that would presumably include much of today’s shameless lobbying and corporate welfare. That said, I thought he glossed over the possibilities of democratic socialism, wherein citizens form local cooperative arrangements that work with local government.

All in all, I think the Road to Serfdom remains, after so many decades, a book that continues to be relevant to discussions about economics in that it outlines a sober and sensible set of warnings against the dangers of utopian thinking. However, it also doesn't purport that capitalism is an innately fair or just system (an issue that a lot of modern day Tea Partiers and Randians seem in denial of), but one whose application must evolve with a society's needs. Trouble is, the devil is in the details either way you go, and Hayek leaves the USA of the early 21st century with a lot of questions that still need good answers. For example, what do we do with the many formerly middle class Americans whose jobs have been lost to globalism and advances in technology? Many of these citizens just aren't cut out for joining the intellectual class (doctor, engineer, professor, etc.), but forcing them to compete for wages with foreign workers or machines isn't a very palatable choice. At what point does Joe Average become a piece of expensive, obsolete equipment in the eyes of capitalism? While Hayek's book is still worth reading for its arguments, I fear we may be on our way out of the reality to which his analysis easily applied.(less)

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Mar 13, 2012 Dev rated it 3 of 5 stars

Written to stem the tide of what Hayek feared would be mass unemployment after WWII, Serfdom has become a philosophical redoubt in the war against government control. Hayek's focus on communism and fascism sharing the same roots might seem obsolete, but his larger points that governmental planning is bound to fail due to human limitations and the mind boggling complexities of even simple economic conditions resonates in today's even more impactful times. In this, he shares lineage w/Taleb's Blac...more

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Sarika Chat Nice review Dev. But just as government planning is bound to fail so holds for private enterprise. Market failures prevail in society due to indivisib...more
May 09, 2012 11:47pm

Dev But remember private enterprise is just trying to make a profit not reorder the world. Private enterprise should be the individual taking risks and ri...more
May 10, 2012 10:18pm

Aug 05, 2011 Jeremy Hatfield rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

For all the ravings my fellow Libertarians make about Atlas Shrugged, I consider The Road to Serfdom as having a lot more to offer in terms of illustrating the dangers of totalitarianism. Instead of using a fictional setting, he draws from the issues of the time it was written--the impending Nazi threat and the troubles of Communism, and draws upon Europe's history of relinquishing freedoms in the pursuit of some sense of order and control over matters.

Furthermore, he presents a dissenting viewp...more

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Jul 29, 2011 Aniruddha rated it 1 of 5 stars

The Road to Serfdom is a book that has divided the post-war divided world. In developed countries that practice capitalism, Hayek's book created a stir although his influence was a shadow of the effect Keynes had on countries. No body said 'I'm an Hayekian now'. Hayek barely finds a place in my economics textbook. This book told me why he was never respected in his life.

With all respect to Hayek and his intellect, this book falls short of being the ultimate attack on socialism it set out to be....more

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May 08, 2011 Bojan Tunguz rated it 5 of 5 stars

Writing in the middle of WWII, F.A. Hayek was concerned with what he was seeing: far from learning lessons from the destructive forces of fascism and communism, many politicians and intellectuals in the west were getting ready to wholeheartedly embrace some of the policies and practices that led to the rise of some of the most vile and destructive regimes in history. The title of the book evokes the old adage that the road to hell is paved with good intentions, and Hayek readily acknowledges tha...more

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Apr 14, 2011 Denerick rated it 3 of 5 stars

I remain unconvinced. Hayeks central thesis seems to be that central planning of any kind; be that the relatively benign desire to reduce poverty or the desire to create a classless society will inevitably create a totalitarian society, as planned societies and programmes naturally cannot be reconciled with the principal of competition, which creates the individualism and the system that best allocates resources within a free society. (Long sentance, I know) Also, since all those dispirate group...more I remain unconvinced. Hayeks central thesis seems to be that central planning of any kind; be that the relatively benign desire to reduce poverty or the desire to create a classless society will inevitably create a totalitarian society, as planned societies and programmes naturally cannot be reconciled with the principal of competition, which creates the individualism and the system that best allocates resources within a free society. (Long sentance, I know) Also, since all those dispirate groups who want to 'plan' naturally hold differing views of what they should plan, the chaos resulting from this would prohibit competition further, which is supposedly the best means through which individuals can realise their potential.

Its probably important to note that this was written during the Second World War, and that Hayek wasn't alive to see the postwar Welfare State in Europe.

Hayek talks about the liberal tradition and the socialist tradition as if they are two irreconcilable foes. The reality is that the Postwar political consensus combined liberalism and socialism; it divided the economic sphere (Heavy State involvement) and the personal sphere (Little State involvement) On this count, Hayek is fundamentally flawed. Who knows, history may yet prove him right. The last 65 years may have been a collective illusion. Maybe the next generation of Hitlers and Stalins will emerge from our benign system. I doubt it, frankly.

For all that, it was a riveting book. I found myself agreeing with many of his core assumptions, even if I didn't buy into the logical follow on from that. Its Glenn Beckian in some places (If you believe that some sort of centrally directed control of the economy can reduce inequality and reduce poverty it doesn't necessarily follow that you want a Nazi or communist regime; or even that one of those ideologies would reign supreme as a result of our good intentions) But overall, a decent defence of 19th century liberalism.

One little section stuck in my mind as admirable; we are still left with the same curse today in the form of pinkos:

'Many a university teacher... has seen english and American students return from the Continent, uncertain whether they were communists or nazis and certain only that they hated western civilisation' p. 30

If he was writing today, I wonder would he himself revise some of his arguments? He seems like a likable fellow, and I do like the way his brain works (And his writing style is accessible - no meaningless jargon here)(less)

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About Friedrich A. von Hayek

Friedrich August von Hayek CH was an Austrian and British economist and philosopher known for his defense of classical liberalism and free-market capitalism against socialist and collectivist thought. He is considered by some to be one of the most important economists and political philosophers of the twentieth century. Hayek's account of how changing prices communicate signals which enable indivi...more

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Books by Friedrich A. von Hayek

The Fatal Conceit: The Errors of Socialism

Law, Legislation and Liberty, Volume 1: Rules and Order

Law, Legislation and Liberty, Volume 2: The Mirage of Social Justice

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“It is true that the virtues which are less esteemed and practiced now--independence, self-reliance, and the willingness to bear risks, the readiness to back one's own conviction against a majority, and the willingness to voluntary cooperation with one's neighbors--are essentially those on which the of an individualist society rests. Collectivism has nothing to put in their place, and in so far as it already has destroyed then it has left a void filled by nothing but the demand for obedience and the compulsion of the individual to what is collectively decided to be good.” — 18 people liked it

“Freedom to order our own conduct in the sphere where material circumstances force a choice upon us, and responsibility for the arrangement of our own life according to our own conscience, is the air in which alone moral sense grows and in which moral values are daily recreated in the free decision of the individual. Responsibility, not to a superior, but to one's own conscience, the awareness of a duty not exacted by compulsion, the necessity to decide which of the things one values are to be sacrificed to others, and to bear the consequences of one's own decision, are the very essence of any morals which deserve the name.” — 13 people liked it

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