In his excellent new book, Hanley presents an engaging interpretation of Fénelon’s political thought as modern and moderate. While I salute the revival of the work of this important and forgotten author, and I concur with Hanley to see him as a courageous opponent of absolute monarchy, tyranny, and political corruption, I argue that Fénelon’s worldview was conservative, in the sense that he endorsed social hierarchy, rejected democracy, and ultimately praised subjection to God rather than reason.
