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</script> </div> </div> <main class='l--content js--fluidType' role='main'> <section class='contentMain js--fluidType' itemscope itemtype='http://schema.org/ScholarlyArticle'> <header class='contentHeader' data-language='en'> <nav class='breadcrumbs js--fluidType' role='navigation'> <a href="/">Home</a><svg class='icon icon--arrow breadcrumbs__separator' viewBox='0 0 500 500'><use xlink:href='#arrow' /></svg><a href="/study-guides">Study Guides</a><svg class='icon icon--arrow breadcrumbs__separator' viewBox='0 0 500 500'><use xlink:href='#arrow' /></svg>On Tyranny<svg class='icon icon--arrow breadcrumbs__separator' viewBox='0 0 500 500'><use xlink:href='#arrow' /></svg>About On Tyranny </nav> <figure class='contentHeader__cover'></figure> <span itemscope itemtype='http://schema.org/Book'> <h2 class='contentHeader__title' itemprop='name'>On Tyranny</h2> </span> <h3 class='contentHeader__subTitle' itemprop='author'> by <a href="/author/timothy-snyder">Timothy Snyder</a> </h3> <div class='section__purchase'><a class="button--purchase" role="button" data-analytics="subscription-click" href="https://www.gradesaver.com/on-tyranny/study-guide/join-now"><span itemprop='name'>Buy Study Guide</span> </a></div> </header> <section> <section class='section section--standard l--contentAdBody'> <nav class='navDropdown'> <a class='navDropdown__link navDropdown__prev is--inactive' title='This is the first section'> <svg class="icon icon--arrowLeft navDropdown__icon" viewBox="0 0 500 500"><use xlink:href="#arrowLeft"></use></svg> </a> <form class='navDropdown__form' data-analytics='navigation-select-submit' role='navigation'> <select class='js--navDropdown select--nav'> <option selected value='/on-tyranny'>About On Tyranny</option> <option value='/on-tyranny/study-guide/summary'>On Tyranny Summary</option> <option value='/on-tyranny/study-guide/character-list'>Character List</option> <option value='/on-tyranny/study-guide/glossary-of-terms'>Glossary</option> <option value='/on-tyranny/study-guide/themes'>Themes</option> <option value='/on-tyranny/study-guide/quotes'>Quotes and Analysis</option> <optgroup label='Summary And Analysis'> <option value='/on-tyranny/study-guide/summary-prologue-chapter-2'>Prologue-Chapter 2</option> <option value='/on-tyranny/study-guide/summary-chapters-3-6'>Chapters 3-6</option> <option value='/on-tyranny/study-guide/summary-chapters-7-10'>Chapters 7-10</option> <option value='/on-tyranny/study-guide/summary-chapters-11-15'>Chapters 11-15</option> <option value='/on-tyranny/study-guide/summary-chapters-16-epilogue'>Chapters 16-Epilogue</option> </optgroup> <option value='/on-tyranny/study-guide/symbols-allegory-motifs'>Symbols, Allegory and Motifs</option> <option value='/on-tyranny/study-guide/metaphors-and-similes'>Metaphors and Similes</option> <option value='/on-tyranny/study-guide/irony'>Irony</option> <option value='/on-tyranny/study-guide/imagery'>Imagery</option> <option value='/on-tyranny/study-guide/hannah-arendt-and-the-origins-of-totalitarianism'>Hannah Arendt and "The Origins of Totalitarianism"</option> <option value='/on-tyranny/study-guide/literary-elements'>Literary Elements</option> <option value='/on-tyranny/study-guide/related-links'>Related Links</option> <option value='/on-tyranny/study-guide/essay-questions'>Essay Questions</option> <optgroup label='Quizzes - Test Yourself!'> <option value='/on-tyranny/study-guide/quiz1'>Quiz 1</option> <option value='/on-tyranny/study-guide/quiz2'>Quiz 2</option> <option value='/on-tyranny/study-guide/quiz3'>Quiz 3</option> <option value='/on-tyranny/study-guide/quiz4'>Quiz 4</option> </optgroup> <option value='/on-tyranny/study-guide/bibliography'>Citations</option> </select> </form> <a class="navDropdown__link navDropdown__next" title="On Tyranny Summary" data-analytics="next-section-arrow" href="/on-tyranny/study-guide/summary"><svg class="icon icon--arrow navDropdown__icon" viewBox="0 0 500 500"><use xlink:href="#arrow"></use></svg> </a></nav> <h1 class='scale--2 contentHeader__sectionTitle' id='section-title'>On Tyranny Study Guide</h1> <div class='section__purchase'><a class="button--purchase" role="button" data-analytics="subscription-click" href="https://www.gradesaver.com/on-tyranny/study-guide/join-now"><span itemprop='name'>Buy Study Guide</span> </a></div> <article class='section__article' itemprop='articleBody' role='article'> <p><em><a href="/on-tyranny">On Tyranny</a> </em>is historian <a href="/author/timothy-snyder">Timothy Snyder</a>’s most famous work. Published in 2017 and updated after the attack on the Capitol in 2020, it uses examples from European history to warn and instruct Americans about the imminent arrival of tyranny in their own country. Although Snyder does not name Donald Trump by name, instead referring to him as “an American president,” it is clear he sees Trump’s candidacy and presidency as the gravest threat to American democracy in the country’s history—but one with innumerable precedents in Europe.</p> <p><em>On Tyranny </em>is a slim volume. It is less than 130 pages, and consists of 20 lessons for Americans. The lessons, such as “Defend institutions,” “Be kind to our language,” and “Learn from peers in other countries,” use historical examples primarily from Nazi Germany and Soviet Russia (as well as a sprinkling of more contemporary examples, such as Putin’s Russia) to illustrate how tyrannical governments come to be and how regular citizens can recognize this ascent to power and what to do about it.</p> <p>Snyder initially wrote the 20 lessons on Facebook after Trump was first elected. It went viral and people begged him to turn it into a book. His publisher Tim Duggan explained that “We’re always trying to figure out whether there’s an audience for a new book, but in my experience, I don’t think I’ve ever seen the audience literally come to us first and say ‘Please publish this – we’re dying to read it,’ which is what happened here.”</p> <p>The book received largely positive reviews. Carlos Lozada wrote in the <em>Washington Post, </em>“Easily the most compelling volume among the early resistance literature … A slim book that fits alongside your pocket Constitution and feels only slightly less vital … Clarifying and unnerving … A memorable work that is grounded in history yet imbued with the fierce urgency of what now.” A graphic version, illustrated by Nora Krug, was published in 2021.</p> <p>It has become even more popular now that Trump won a second term in 2024. As of March 2025, it had been on the <em>New York Times </em>Best Sellers List for 42 weeks.</p> </article> <footer class='contentFooter'> <nav class='nextPrev' itemprop='pagination' role='navigation'> <a class="nextPrev__link nextPrev__next" title="On Tyranny Summary" data-analytics="next-section-link" href="/on-tyranny/study-guide/summary"><svg class="icon icon--arrow next__icon" viewBox="0 0 500 500"><use xlink:href="#arrow"></use></svg> <strong>Next Section</strong> <span class='nextPrev__section'>On Tyranny Summary</span> </a></nav> <a class="button--purchase" role="button" data-analytics="subscription-click" href="https://www.gradesaver.com/on-tyranny/study-guide/join-now"><span itemprop='name'>Buy Study Guide</span> </a> <section aria-label='How To Cite On Tyranny Study Guide in MLA Format' class='citation is--hidden' itemprop='citation' role='tooltip'> <h5 class='citation__title'>How To Cite https://www.gradesaver.com/on-tyranny in MLA Format</h5> <span class='citation__content'>Osborne-Bartucca, Kristen. 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