More than ever before, our conflict-ridden, drifting planet needs
the qualities that Europe, unique among the continents, has
developed in more than two millennia of history: its
self-criticism, its urge to self-transcendence, exploration and
experiment, its conviction that alternative and better forms of
human togetherness can be achieved, as well as its dedication to
the cause of seeking and promoting this improvement in practice.
But today Europe is unsure of itself and its place in a
fast-changing world; it is devoid of vision, limited in resources
and lacking the will to pursue its vocation. It is also struggling
with the consequences of a one-sided process of globalization which
is divorcing power from politics, inciting the shift from the
social state to security-focused governance and piling up the
casualties of uncontrolled market expansion and the ethically blind
commercialization of human life.
Bauman argues that despite the odds Europe still has much to
offer in dealing with the great challenges that face us in the
twenty-first century. Through sharing its own hard-won historical
lessons, Europe can play a vital role in moving from the
Hobbesian-like world in which we find ourselves today towards the
kind of peaceful unification of humanity that was once envisioned
by Kant.

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