Old Mill Room 525
94 University Pl
Burlington, VT 05405
United States
- B.A., Harvard University
- Ph.D., Princeton University
radio/podcast
radio/podcast
print/web
print/web
JOURNALISTS: Need help scheduling an interview? Contact UVM media relations or search for a UVM expert.
Areas of expertise
Political theory and the history of political thought. Specific research areas include American individualism; liberalism and its history; democracy and democratic citizenship; and the political ideas of the nineteenth century.
BIO
Alex Zakaras is a professor in the Department of Political Science. He joined the faculty in 2005 after completing his Ph.D. at Princeton University. His most recent book, Freedom for All: What A Liberal Society Could Be (Yale University Press, 2005), offers a principled defense of liberal ideals and institutions in this time of crisis. He is also the author of The Roots of American Individualism: Political Myth in the Age of Jackson (Princeton University Press, 2022) and Individuality and Mass Democracy: Mill, Emerson, and the Burdens of Citizenship (Oxford University Press, 2009). Before that, he co-edited J.S. Mill’s Political Thought: A Bicentennial Reassessment (Cambridge University Press, 2007).
Prof. Zakaras teaches a range of courses in the Department of Political Science and the Patrick Leahy Honors College. These include American Political Thought, Democratic Theory, Liberalism and Its Critics, American Individualism, Ethics and Public Policy, and Introduction to Political Theory.
Hear Alex Zakaras in the media:
- Discussing his 2025 book, Freedom for All, on Future Hindsight, Political Theory Review, or PoliticsGirl.
- Discussing his 2022 book, The Roots of American Individualism, on ABC Radio.
- Discussing Emerson's "Self-Reliance" on NPR's On Point.
Bio
Alex Zakaras is a professor in the Department of Political Science. He joined the faculty in 2005 after completing his Ph.D. at Princeton University. His most recent book, Freedom for All: What A Liberal Society Could Be (Yale University Press, 2005), offers a principled defense of liberal ideals and institutions in this time of crisis. He is also the author of The Roots of American Individualism: Political Myth in the Age of Jackson (Princeton University Press, 2022) and Individuality and Mass Democracy: Mill, Emerson, and the Burdens of Citizenship (Oxford University Press, 2009). Before that, he co-edited J.S. Mill’s Political Thought: A Bicentennial Reassessment (Cambridge University Press, 2007).
Prof. Zakaras teaches a range of courses in the Department of Political Science and the Patrick Leahy Honors College. These include American Political Thought, Democratic Theory, Liberalism and Its Critics, American Individualism, Ethics and Public Policy, and Introduction to Political Theory.
Hear Alex Zakaras in the media:
- Discussing his 2025 book, Freedom for All, on Future Hindsight, Political Theory Review, or PoliticsGirl.
- Discussing his 2022 book, The Roots of American Individualism, on ABC Radio.
- Discussing Emerson's "Self-Reliance" on NPR's On Point.