Virginia Postrel - Definition and Overview

Virginia Postrel is a political and cultural writer of broadly libertarian, or classical liberal, views. She is best known for her 1998 book The Future and its Enemies. In it she explains her philosophy, "dynamism," which she contrasts with "stasis." Loosely, the latter refers to top-down control and regulation and desire to maintain the present state of affairs, whereas the former is forward-looking and change-seeking and generally favors unregulated organization through "spontaneous order".

Virginia Postrel was editor of Reason from July 1989 to January 2000 and editor-at-large in 2000 and 2001.

See also: dynamism

Books

• The Future and Its Enemies: The Growing Conflict Over Creativity, Enterprise, and Progress, Free Press, (December 1, 1998) (ISBN 0684862697)
• The Substance of Style: How the Rise of Aesthetic Value Is Remaking Commerce, Culture, and Consciousness, HarperCollins, September 2003 (ISBN 0060186321)

External links

• Postrel's website (http://www.dynamist.com/)
• Blog (http://www.dynamist.com/weblog/index.html)