The Dark Enlightenment

The rising anti-democratic culture of the alt-right

Lovers of culture and activists often treat culture as a battlefield where progressive art, media, and pedagogy automatically counter fascism — until they read about the Dark Enlightenment, an anti‑democratic, anti‑egalitarian philosophy that arose in online forums in the late 2000s. At its centre sits a prominent software engineer, Curtis Yarvin, who writes under the pseudonym ‘Moldbug,’ and British philosopher Nick Land, who rejects the Enlightenment’s core values of universal rights, popular sovereignty, and rational discourse. Land’s contribution to the movement is itself a chilling read full of a utilitarian view of culture; he champions a culture that fosters hierarchy, technocratic authority, and market‑driven governance. 

Their vision imagines the state as a corporate entity run by a CEO‑monarch who can outcompete rival city‑states in a Darwinian marketplace of governance, embracing scientific racism, accelerationist capitalism, and a “Cathedral” metaphor for contemporary liberal institutions that supposedly enforce progressivism and the synopsis of egalitarianism. The ideology’s emphasis on efficient authoritarian rule resonates with certain fascist leaning figures who seek to replace democratic deliberation with elite‑driven, techno‑feudal structures. The worst in all that? These ideas are spreading faster than ever. Government‑policy pilots such as the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and the Project 2025 proposal have adopted Yarvin’s “RAGE” (Retire All Government Employees) language, telling of how a philosophy is being translated into concrete policy drafts. It goes beyond obscure blogs, having seeped into mainstream right‑wing circles. Prominent tech investors like Peter Thiel or Marc Andreesen and political operatives like Steve Bannon and JD Vance have cited or praised its ideas. The irony is that Peter Thiel’s public endorsements have turned the philosophy into a tech‑elite meme. Thiel has repeatedly praised Yarvin and called him “fully enlightened,” linking the movement to the venture‑capital network known as the Thielverse.

The rise of the Dark Enlightenment marks a shift from its place within marginalised groups to significant societal impact, challenging our traditional liberal view of culture. This emerging perspective frames both media and academic institutions as tools of power that shape collective beliefs to uphold egalitarian ideals. Cultural production is being appropriated by authoritarian technocrats who utilise aesthetics, myth-making, and digital channels to legitimise their hierarchical dominance, all while silencing works that critically question their narratives. Culture no longer stands as a guaranteed bastion of resistance; it is slowly becoming a mouthpiece for neo-reactionary and fascist agendas. This awareness compels scholars and activists to critically examine cultural practices, not just focusing on who is being resisted, but also identifying who is leveraging cultural symbols to propagate a new and anti-liberal ideology.

Our concern about the Dark Enlightenment is warranted, as it commercialises culture into a regulated form of knowledge that undermines the very principles of free thought. Take the example of the New College in Florida. Here, education, especially within the liberal arts, is increasingly facing threats from influential new pseudo-intellectuals. Our fight should begin at the foundational levels of culture itself. We must foster a cultural landscape free from the approval of tech elites, one that counters the alt-right media and actively works to recruit students like us on campuses, preventing the infiltration of the Dark Enlightenment into political systems.

Image from Wikimedia Commons