Exodus: How Migration Is Changing Our World

In the Prologue, Collier establishes the book’s central argument: That migration, while often framed as an economic necessity or a moral imperative, has profound and overlooked consequences for both the societies people leave behind and those they enter. Collier situates migration as a defining force of modern global dynamics, one that reshapes economies, cultures, and national identities in ways that are both beneficial and destabilizing. His approach challenges dominant liberal narratives that celebrate migration as an unqualified good, instead presenting it as a complex phenomenon that demands more nuanced policy responses.

Collier’s opening anecdote about his grandfather is a narrative entry point that personalizes the abstract tensions surrounding migration, introducing The Power of Narratives in Migration Policy. The story of Hellenschmidt’s rise from a penniless German immigrant to an established shop owner, only to be violently ostracized during World War I, illustrates how national identity can be both a source of belonging and a justification for exclusion. His grandfather’s forced internment, his wife’s decline into depression, and his son’s eventual name change from Karl Hellenschmidt Jr. to Charles Collier encapsulate a broader historical pattern: Immigrants who, once integrated into society, can become sudden outcasts when political tides shift. This personal history foreshadows the book’s larger argument—that migration policies cannot be separated from the broader question of national identity and the fragile sense of belonging that underpins stable societies.

The book’s intellectual foundation rests on three key questions: What drives migration; how it affects those left behind; and how it impacts host societies. Collier explicitly frames these as interdisciplinary concerns, requiring insights from economics, psychology, and moral philosophy. His critique of the prevailing “postnational” worldview emerges from this framework, introducing The Balance Between Humanitarian Goals and National Interests. While his own life—a family spread across multiple countries, holding different passports—suggests an embrace of globalism, he questions whether a world without strong national identities is truly viable. He argues that the stability of mobile, global elites depends on societies where people remain rooted, preserving institutions and cultural continuity. This notion challenges the liberal assumption that national identity is outdated, instead presenting it as an essential mechanism for social trust and economic stability.

Finally, Collier sets the tone for the book by framing it as an effort to break through polarized and overly technical debates on migration. He critiques the existing literature for either being narrowly quantitative or dominated by advocacy, presenting his work as an attempt to bridge this divide. His admission that some of his arguments are speculative signals a willingness to engage in open debate rather than deliver definitive conclusions. Collier describes migration as a “hornet’s nest” (7) of public concern, a phrase that stresses the need for intellectual rigor over ideological reflex in approaching the issue.