Alain Badiou tests his theories on the event and the idea of communism against recent events in the Arab world and Europe, describing a time of uprisings that heralds a waking of history. Through precise analyses of the Arab Spring and the riots in England, Alain Badiou reveals the structure of the uprising, thereby undermining the thesis of the end of history and the finality of liberal capitalist democracy. Rather, a waking of history is underway, in which an event, something new, a groundbreaking philosophical idea must organize and structure a forthcoming politics. In this book, Badiou recapitulates and specifically addresses his political philosophy.