The Paranoid Style in American Politics and Other Essays
A History, American History, Political Science book. If for every error and every act of incompetence one can substitute an act of treason,...
This timely reissue of Richard Hofstadter's classic work on the fringe groups that influence American electoral politics offers an invaluable perspective on contemporary domestic affairs. In The Paranoid Style in American Politics, acclaimed historian Richard Hofstadter examines the competing forces in American political discourse and how fringe groups can influence — and derail — the larger agendas of a political party. He investigates the politics of the irrational, shedding light on how the behavior of individuals can seem out of proportion with actual political issues, and how such behavior impacts larger groups. With such other classic essays as “Free Silver and the Mind of 'Coin' Harvey” and “What Happened to the Antitrust Movement?”, The Paranoid Style in American Politics remains both a seminal text of political history and a vital analysis of the ways...
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- Filetype: PDF
- Pages: 346 pages
- ISBN: 9780674654617 / 674654617
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More About The Paranoid Style in American Politics and Other Essays
As a member of the avant-garde who is capable of perceiving the conspiracy before it is fully obvious to an as yet unaroused public, the paranoid is a militant leader. He does not see social conflict as something to be mediated and compromised, in the manner of the working politician. Since what is at stake is always a conflict between absolute good and absolute evil, what is necessary is not compromise but the will to fight things out to a finish. Since the enemy is thought of as being totally evil and totally unappeasable, he must be totally eliminatedif... Any historian of warfare knows that it is in good part a comedy of errors and a museum of incompetence; but if for every error and every act of incompetence one can substitute an act of treason, we can see how many points of fascinating interpretation are open to the paranoid imagination: treason in high places can be found at almost every turning -- and in the end the real mystery, for one who reads the primary works of paranoid scholarship, is not how the United States has been brought to its present dangerous position, but how it has managed to survive... However, in a populistic culture like ours, which seems to lack a responsible elite with political and moral autonomy, and in which it is possible to exploit the wildest currents of public sentiment for private purposes, it is at least conceivable that a highly organized, vocal, active, and well-financed minority could create a political climate in which the rational pursuit of our well-being and safety would become impossible. Richard Hofstadter, The Paranoid Style in American Politics
Should be required reading in every freshman Poli-Sci class. Still sadly relevant to the current moment. I intended to read only the title essay, but found the entire collection fascinating. The first half of the book features similarly themed essays about the paranoid style through American history and in the then-contemporary sixties. It's remarkable how little has changed, except that the lunatics are now a bit closer to being in charge... A disjointed set of essays - so only the first half of the book has anything to do with the title. The first half to had some interesting history on politics and fear. But, overall, I had trouble sticking with his writing style in these essays - especially the last one. His writings ramble and are overly wordy.
