The Brexiteers have brought romance back into politics

I recently got round to reading Francis Fukuyama’s famous book The End of History and the Last Man. As well as heralding the triumph of liberal democracy, he explains that a snake will always lurk in the garden, for human nature is not entirely won over by the gospel of equality. He introduces us to the term megalothymia, the desire to distinguish oneself from the rest, be the best. It’s expressed in capitalism, sport and other cultural pursuits.

It is also likely to be expressed in politics: leaders will probably emerge who don’t have any new ideology, but want to rock the liberal democratic boat. They are motivated by a sort of primitive lust for adventure. This impulse was a central cause of the First World War, he argues: ‘Many European publics simply wanted war because they were fed up with the dullness and lack of community in civilian life.’