In a cultural landscape dominated by hot takes and petty polemics, The Point stands for something different. Informed by the conviction that humanistic thinking has relevance for everyday life, the magazine has long maintained a rare space for thoughtful dialogue between a wide range of political views, philosophical perspectives, and personal experiences: its contributors include liberals and conservatives, philosophers and activists, Marxists and Catholics, New Yorkers and Midwesterners. A little more than a decade since its founding on the campus of the University of Chicago, it offers a unique and revelatory look at the changing face of America, one that speaks not only to way American minds have been forced to “open” by a decade of trauma and transformation, but also to the challenge of remaining open to our fellow citizens during our deeply divided present. Featuring award-winning and highly acclaimed essays from The Point’s first ten years, The Opening of the American Mind traces the path of American intellect from the magazine’s inception in 2009, when Barack Obama was ascending the steps of the White House, to the brink of the 2020 election. The essays, chosen both for the way they capture their time and transcend it, are assembled into five sections that address cycles of cultural frustrations, social movements, and the aftermath of the 2016 election, and provide lively, forward-looking considerations of how we might expand our imaginations into the future. Spanning the era of Obama and Trump, Occupy Wall Street and Black Lives Matter, #MeToo and renewed attention to reparations, this anthology offers critical reflections on some of the decade’s most influential events and stands as a testament to the significance of open exchange. The intellectual dialogue provided by The Point has never been more urgently needed, and this collection will bring the magazine’s vital work to an even broader readership.

Table of Contents:
Introduction  Jon Baskin & Anastasia Berg The End of the End of History Predatory Habits Etay Zwick Hard Feelings  Ben Jeffery No Such Thing? Jonny Thakkar Forward with Fukuyama Daniel Luban After Ferguson Who Will Pay Reparations on My Soul? Jesse McCarthy Linked Fate Melina Abdullah After Ferguson Brandon M. Terry Final Fantasy Understanding Is Dangerous Kathryn Lofton Midwestworld Meghan O’Gieblyn Letter on Our President The Editors Pleasure Won Lauren Berlant & Bea Malsky Final Fantasy James Duesterberg Tired of Winning Tired of Winning  Jon Baskin I Am Madame Bovary Anastasia Berg Closing of the American Mind Jacob Hamburger Switching Off  Rachel Wiseman Thinking Ahead Innocence Abroad Ursula Lindsey This, Too, Was History Peter C. Baker The Dictatorship of the Present John Michael Colón Leaving Herland Nora Caplan-Bricker It’s All Just Beginning Justin E. H. Smith List of Contributors Acknowledgments