Dark Enlightenment

Not to be confused with Counter-Enlightenment or Intellectual dark web.

The Dark Enlightenment, also called the neo-reactionary movement (sometimes abbreviated to NRx), is an anti-democratic, anti-egalitarian,[1] reactionary philosophical and political movement.[2] The term "Dark Enlightenment" is a reaction to the Age of Enlightenment and apologia for the public view of the "Dark Ages".

The term The Endarkenment describes a similar idea; the rejection of reason and science. Its origin is obscure but it was used by David Colquhoun in 2007. [3]

The ideology generally rejects Whig historiography[4]—the concept that history shows an inevitable progression towards greater liberty and enlightenment, culminating in liberal democracy and constitutional monarchy[4]—in favor of a return to traditional societal constructs and forms of government, including absolute monarchism and other older forms of leadership such as cameralism.[5]

  1. ^ Kindinger, Evangelia; Schmitt, Mark (4 January 2019). "Conclusion: Digital culture and the afterlife of white supremacist movements". The Intersections of Whiteness. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-351-11277-2. Retrieved 29 November 2022.
  2. ^ Jones, Andrew (2019). "From NeoReactionary Theory to the Alt-Right". Critical Theory and the Humanities in the Age of the Alt-Right. Springer International Publishing. pp. 101–120. doi:10.1007/978-3-030-18753-8_6. ISBN 978-3-030-18753-8.
  3. ^ David Colquhoun (2007-08-15). "The age of endarkenment". The Guardian.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  4. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference qz was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Gray, Rosie (10 February 2017). "Behind the Internet's Anti-Democracy Movement". The Atlantic. Archived from the original on 10 February 2017. Retrieved 15 February 2017.