The Myth of the Strong Leader: Political Leadership in the Modern Age - Hardcover

Brown, Archie

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1847921752 ISBN 13: 9781847921758

Publisher: The Bodley Head, 2014

Synopsis

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.

About this title

About the Author

Archie Brown is Emeritus Professor of Politics at Oxford University and an Emeritus Fellow of St. Antony's College, Oxford, where he was a Professor of Politics and Director of St. Antony's Russian and East European Centre. In 2010 he received one of the three Diamond Jubilee Lifetime Achievement in Political Studies Awards. Brown is considered one of the foremost experts in Soviet and Communist politics, the Cold War, and political leadership, and has advised several political leaders, including Margaret Thatcher on the eve of Gorbachev's first visit to Britain. The author or editor of over eighteen books, including The Gorbachev Factor and The Rise and Fall of Communism--both winners of the W.J.M. Mackenzie Prize for best political science book of the year--Brown lives in Oxford.

Review

"...an important and unusual read ... Brown does a wonderful job of showing how the same qualities that can seem so appealing in strong leaders can lead, in the mildest cases, to bad decision-- and, in the most extreme cases, to death and suffering on a massive scale ... Though The Myth of the Strong Leader is about political leadership, you come away from Brown's book with a deeper understanding of leadership in general."―Bill Gates' Favorite Books of 2016

"Counter-intuitive but splendidly argued ... This is an ambitious work made more compelling by its breadth."―Washington Post

"Rich and multidimensional."―Foreign Affairs

"It is a pleasure to find a book on political leadership that imposes no theories or models but studies actual political leaders, dozens of them from many countries, in a historical survey from the beginning of the 20th century."―Wall Street Journal

"A rich description of different varieties of political leadership in diverse cultures. It is hard to imagine a better guide than Brown, who has lived and worked in the UK, US and Russia, and is both an outstanding political scholar and an elegant, witty writer."―Guardian (UK)

"Persuasive analysis of politically leadership."―Independent (UK)

"Impressive in scope and sophistication, Brown offers a model of leadership that is both strong and purpose driven."―Choice

"A sure-handed historical review with an engaging viewpoint."―Kirkus

"Rich in historical detail and insight."―Publishers Weekly

"Brown raises important questions about the nature of leadership and the expectations we have for our leaders."―Booklist

Edition details

• Publisher: The Bodley Head
• Publication date: 2014
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1847921752
• ISBN 13: 9781847921758
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 480