Progress: Can We Do Without It?

by Massimo L. Salvadori

We are now experiencing immense progress, but as an idea it seems inadequate. Our focus is now on insecurity, threat and a sense that economic growth has come at the price of environmental devastation.

In a passionate attempt to 'give a future to the future' Massimo Salvadori traces the turbulent history of an idea. Looking at both its seductiveness and the reasons for its defeats, this book takes us on a journey through revolution, communism, Nazism, social democracy and globalization. It is only by understanding what actually happened to progress, he argues, that we can hope for real development in future.

This powerful essay by a leading political thinker is a manifesto for our times.

128 pages, Hardcover

First published February 15, 2008

About the author

Massimo Luigi Salvadori, spesso citato come Massimo L. Salvadori (Ivrea, 1936), è uno storico e politico italiano.
Professore emerito, ordinario di Storia delle Dottrine Politiche nell'Università di Torino.
Membro del Comitato scientifico della Fondazione Luigi Einaudi di Torino, nel quale ha coperto per alcuni anni la carica di Presidente. Socio corrispondente dell'Accademia delle Scienze di Torino dal 1980, è dal 1997 socio nazionale residente nella classe di Scienze morali, storiche e filologiche. Collabora con il quotidiano la Repubblica.

Reviews

[Noah نوح · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reading this book was less an exercise in agreement than a confrontation with my own intellectual naivety. I had long admired communism for its promise of equality, justice, and the dismantling of exploitation. These are powerful ideals, and they should be. But the book makes clear how easily such ideals, once absolutised, have justified mass violence. Communism did not merely fail; it asked too much of mankind, assuming societies could consistently act beyond self-interest to sustain total redistribution and collective ownership. When reality resists, coercion takes over.

If political economy aims to reduce suffering rather than preserve ideological purity, attention must shift from theory to what can actually work. Social democracy offers a pragmatic alternative. It neither abolishes capitalism nor leaves it unchecked, but regulates and redistributes, stabilising society while maintaining productive capacity. The Welfare State, though imperfect, has delivered tangible improvements in healthcare, education, and living standards without demanding a radical transformation of human nature.

That said, social democracy is not perfect. It depends on strong institutions and can falter under inequality, political fragmentation, or global economic pressures. Its chapter in the book spans just 5 pages, perhaps because radical transformations capture the imagination, while incremental systems that deliver results are less celebrated. Yet it is precisely this slow, uneven compromise between capital and labour that has produced measurable gains.

Social democracy appeals not because it is ideal, but because it respects human limitations while pursuing economic justice. It largely mirrors Islamic governance, which emphasised fulfilling responsibilities to the poor and vulnerable within societal limits. It offers a system that improves lives and achieves Progress through practical, achievable, and sustainable steps, acknowledging human imperfection without abandoning moral aims. Communism may promise total equality, but its history reminds us of the cost of overestimating human perfectibility.