You can never cross the ocean unless you have the courage to lose sight of the shore. Andrè Gide
Idea Transcript
Books
Try Prime
Shop by
Your Amazon.co.uk
Department Books
Advanced Search
Best Sellers
Today's Deals
Top New Releases
Gift Cards & Top Up Deals in Books
Sell
Hello. Sign in
Help
School Books
Your Account
Textbooks
Books Outlet
Children's Books
Sign in
Try
Prime
Your
Lists
Calendars & Diaries
New customer? Start here.
In this magisterial and wide-ranging survey of political leadership over the past hundred years, Archie Brown challenges the widespread belief that strong leaders – those who dominate their colleagues and the policy-making process – are the most successful and admirable. Within authoritarian regimes, a more collective leadership is a lesser evil compared with personal dictatorship where cultivation of the myth of the strong leader is often a prelude to oppression and carnage. Within democracies, although ‘strong leaders’ are seldom as strong or independent as they purport to be, the idea that one person is entitled to take the big decisions is dangerous nonetheless, and the advantages of a collegial style of leadership are too often overlooked. In reality, only a minority of political leaders make a big difference, by challenging assumptions about the politically possible or setting in motion systemic change. Yet in a democracy that is rare. It is especially when enlightened leaders acquire power in an authoritarian system that the opportunity for radical transformation occurs. Franklin D. Roosevelt and Lyndon B. Johnson, Willy Brandt and Mikhail Gorbachev, Deng Xiaoping and Nelson Mandela, Margaret Thatcher and Tony Blair are among the leaders whom Brown examines in this original and illuminating study.
Hardcover: 480 pages Publisher: Bodley Head (10 April 2014) Language: English ISBN-10: 1847921752 ISBN-13: 978-1847921758 Product Dimensions: 16.2 x 4.3 x 24 cm Average Customer Review:
15 customer reviews
Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 492,430 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #4108 in Books > Society, Politics & Philosophy > Government & Politics > Political Science & Ideology > Political Science #5189 in Books > Biography > Political > Political Leaders & Leadership Would you like to tell us about a lower price? If you are a seller for this product, would you like to suggest updates through seller support?