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Unlike some other reproductions of classic texts (1) We have not
used OCR(Optical Character Recognition), as this leads to bad
quality books with introduced typos. (2) In books where there are
images such as portraits, maps, sketches etc We have endeavoured to
keep the quality of these images, so they represent accurately the
original artefact. Although occasionally there may be certain
imperfections with these old texts, we feel they deserve to be made
available for future generations to enjoy.
Unlike some other reproductions of classic texts (1) We have not
used OCR(Optical Character Recognition), as this leads to bad
quality books with introduced typos. (2) In books where there are
images such as portraits, maps, sketches etc We have endeavoured to
keep the quality of these images, so they represent accurately the
original artefact. Although occasionally there may be certain
imperfections with these old texts, we feel they deserve to be made
available for future generations to enjoy.
Unlike some other reproductions of classic texts (1) We have not
used OCR(Optical Character Recognition), as this leads to bad
quality books with introduced typos. (2) In books where there are
images such as portraits, maps, sketches etc We have endeavoured to
keep the quality of these images, so they represent accurately the
original artefact. Although occasionally there may be certain
imperfections with these old texts, we feel they deserve to be made
available for future generations to enjoy.
Public Opinion is Walter Lippmann's groundbreaking work which
demonstrates how individual beliefs are swayed by stereotypes, the
mass media, and political propaganda. The book opens with the
notion that democracy in the age of super fast communications is
obsolete. He analyses the impact of several phenomena, such as the
radio and newspapers, to support his criticisms of the
sociopolitical situation as it stands. He famously coins the term
'manufactured consent', for the fomenting of views which ultimately
work against the interests of those who hold them. Lippmann
contends that owing to the masses of information flung at the
population on a daily basis, opinions regarding entire groups in
society are being reduced to simple stereotypes. The actual
complexity and nuance of life, Lippmann contends, is undermined by
the ever-faster modes of communication appearing regularly.
This scarce antiquarian book is included in our special Legacy
Reprint Series. In the interest of creating a more extensive
selection of rare historical book reprints, we have chosen to
reproduce this title even though it may possibly have occasional
imperfections such as missing and blurred pages, missing text, poor
pictures, markings, dark backgrounds and other reproduction issues
beyond our control. Because this work is culturally important, we
have made it available as a part of our commitment to protecting,
preserving and promoting the world's literature.
Today it is assumed that we understand contemporary nationalism and
nation-building. Researchers rarely consider the very different
traditions from which such state-building emerged. Instead, there
is almost too much discussion of the "global village," with its
supposed uniformity and inevitable trajectories. We need to view
modernity as something other than a single condition with a
preordained future. New visions of a modern civilization are
emerging throughout the world, calliing for a far-reaching
appraisal of the older visions of modernization. Following
Eisenstadt's and Schluchter's introduction, Bjorn Wittrock explores
the varieties and transitions of early modern societies, noting
that only by looking at societies' collective identities and their
modes of mediating in the public sphere can the distinguishing
factors between modernity be appreciated. Sheldon Pollock discusses
the use of vernacular language in India through its literary
culture and polity, 1000-1500. Sanjay Subrahmanyam, sums up major
developments in the recent historiography of South Asia from 1400
to 1750. David L. Howell focuses on the boundaries of the early
modern Japanese state, including its political boundaries and the
boundaries of collective identity and social status. Mary Elizabeth
Berry examines public life in authoritarian Japan. Frederic
Wakeman, Jr. probes the boundaries of the political game and how
they were affected by the increased political centralization that
developed after the disorder of the Ming-Qing transition during the
seventeenth century. Alexander Woodside discusses territorial order
and collective-identity tensions in Confucian Asia. Bernhard Giesen
argues that the French Enlightenment can be described as an
extension of absolutist court culture. Finally essay, Victor
Perez-Diaz examines the state and public sphere in Spain during the
Ancient Regime contrasting two ideal types of states--a
"nomocratic" model and a "teleocratic" model. This volume addresses
cultural and political practices not only from outside the European
and American spheres but also over long periods of time in which
the internal dynamics of other civilizations become visible. Its
broad-ranging use of empirical materials enables us to think
comparatively and historically about the ways in which different
modernities took shape.
The Good Society is a critical text in the history of liberalism.
Initially a series of articles published in a variety of Lippmann's
favorite magazines, as the whole evolved, it became a frontal
assault against totalitarian tendencies within American society.
Lippmann took to task those who sought to improve the lot of
mankind by undoing the work of their predecessors and by
undermining movements in which men struggle to be free. This book
is a strong indictment of programs of reform that are at odds with
the liberal tradition, and it is critical of those who ask people
to choose between security and liberty. The Good Society falls
naturally into two segments. In the first, Lippmann shows the
errors and common fallacies of faith in government as the solution
to all problems. He says, "from left to right, from communist to
conservative. They all believe the same fundamental doctrine. All
the philosophies go into battle singing the same tune with slightly
different words." In the second part of the book, Lippmann offers
reasons why liberalism lost sight of its purpose and suggests the
first principles on which it can flourish again. Lippmann argues
that liberalism's revival is inevitable because no other system of
government can work, given the kind of economic world mankind
seeks. He did not write The Good Society to please adherents of any
political ideology. Lippmann challenges all philosophies of
government, and yet manages to present a positive program.
Bewildered liberals and conservatives alike will find this work a
successful effort to synthesize a theory of liberalism with the
practice of a strong democracy. Gary Dean Best has provided the
twenty-first century reader a clear-eyed context for interpreting
Lippmann's defense of classical liberalism. The Good Society is the
eleventh in a series of books written by Walter Lippmann reissued
by Transaction with new introductions and in a paperback format. As
with other major figures of the twentieth century such as Thorstein
Veblen, Peter Drucker, Margaret Mead, and Richard Hoggart, these
are classic books with contemporary perspectives.
American Inquisitors is one of the small gems among Walter
Lippmann's larger books. Written in response to the trials of John
Scopes and William McAndrew in 1925 and 1927, this volume contains
a succinct analysis of a basic problem of democracy: the conflict
between intellectual freedom and majority rule. In both cases, the
state, acting in the name of popular sovereignty, sought to
suppress teaching that was contrary to the tenets of religious
fundamentalism and patriotic tradition. In distilling the arguments
surrounding both trials, Lippmann sounds a warning against the
tyranny of the majority and challenges people to rethink their
theories of liberty and democracy.American Inquisitors consists of
five related dialogues, each exploring a different dilemma at the
heart of democratic political theory. The first two establish the
principles of majority rule and freedom of the mind in the persons
of William Jennings Bryan and Thomas Jefferson, with Socrates
urging a reexamination of all principles..These dialogues debate
the will and the rational capacity of the people to rule and
demonstrate the relative nature of freedom in democratic
society.The third and fourth dialogues set a fundamentalist against
a modernist and an Americanist against a scholar. Lippmann resists
easy stereotyping and puts challenging insights and plausible
arguments into the mouths of all the parties. These dialogues ask
whether commitment to community comes before intellectual inquiry,
'or whether the search for truth precedes identity. The final
dialogue, between Socrates and a conscientious teacher, attempts to
define the mission of teaching and determine when and how to face
the consequences of truth. Lippmann concludes that the program of
liberty is to deprive the sovereign of absolute and arbitrary rule.
Taken as a whole, the dialogues constitute an essential consistency
within Lippmann's political thought, and delineate a recurring
problem hi American politcal culture. American Inquisitors will be
of special interest to political scientists, historians,
sociologists, and American studies specialists.
Walter Lippmann is arguably the most influential journalist in
American history. From the time of Woodrow Wilson to the time of
Lyndon Johnson, what Walter Lippmann said mattered. His word was
valued because of his exceptional capacity for analysis, and
because he had the rare ability to make complex ideas and problems
manageable and understandable. Lippmann combined the practical and
the theoretical and saw them as inseparable. He savored the life of
the mind and relished the arena of politics. He was political
philosopher, social commentator, political advisor and
activist-intellectual.As the country grappled with an impressive
influx of European ideas and with the threatening press of European
problems, so did Lippmann. Like President Wilson, he came to
believe that the condition of the modern world required that
America either act or be acted upon. New methods of communication
and propaganda meant that ideas contrary to America's would be
widely heard. Reformed liberalism and the projection of that
liberalism into a troubled world were the best hedge against
totalitarian schemes and imperialist aggression. The Stakes of
Diplomacy resulted from Lippmann's assignment by Wilson's Secretary
of War Baker, to a project for studying possible terms of peace and
ways to influence the world in a liberal-democratic direction.The
Stakes of Diplomacy ends both with admiration for the peaceful
nature of democracies and a plea for their further influence in the
world, and with an understanding that democracy's influence will
depend partly upon its physical might and geopolitical
collaboration. Lippmann stands as a prominent figure in America's
twentieth-century quest for power with honor. He concludes this
volume with the warning that there is no safe way and no morally
feasible way to turn back from our dangerous mission: "Unless the
people who are humane and sympathetic, the people who wish to live
and let live, are masters of the situation, the world faces an
indefinite vista of conquest and terror."
This set of brief pieces examines the relation of power to
knowledge. Lippmann paid little homage to the innate wisdom of the
people. While he had no wish to disenfranchise citizens, he
believed elites drove the engines of power. His point was that
liberty and democracy require government that will, when necessary,
"swim against the tides of private feelings." Because the public is
too divided, poorly informed, and too self-regarding, authority has
to be delegated, perhaps to "intelligence bureaus," or at least to
those who are wiser than the many that have the power to decide
vexing questions on their own merits. Lippmann knew that in the
real world we cannot expect to be ruled by philosopher-kings. While
ready to settle for less, he was not ready to settle for
politicians who get ahead "only as they placate, appease, bribe,
seduce, bamboozle and otherwise manage to manipulate demanding and
threatening elements in their constituencies." The seducers and
bamboozlers were generally in charge, and because they were in an
age "rich with varied and generous passions" they had become
disorderly and deranged. Public Persons is the informal side of The
Public Philosophy. Lippmann tries to account for the decline of
Western democracies and prescribe for their revival. He concludes
that it is not possible to discover by rational inquiry the
conditions that must be met if there is to be a good society.
Lippmann saw tension between private impulses and transcendent
truth as the "inexhaustible theme of human discourse." The
occasional harmonies in the lives of saints and the deeds of heroes
and the excellence of genius are glorious. But glory was the
exception, wretchedness the rule. In this casual volume both are
given a human face.
This set of brief pieces examines the relation of power to
knowledge. Lippmann paid little homage to the innate wisdom of the
people. While he had no wish to disenfranchise citizens, he
believed elites drove the engines of power. His point was that
liberty and democracy require government that will, when necessary,
"swim against the tides of private feelings." Because the public is
too divided, poorly informed, and too self-regarding, authority has
to be delegated, perhaps to "intelligence bureaus," or at least to
those who are wiser than the many that have the power to decide
vexing questions on their own merits.
Lippmann knew that in the real world we cannot expect to be
ruled by philosopher-kings. While ready to settle for less, he was
not ready to settle for politicians who get ahead "only as they
placate, appease, bribe, seduce, bamboozle and otherwise manage to
manipulate demanding and threatening elements in their
constituencies." The seducers and bamboozlers were generally in
charge, and because they were in an age "rich with varied and
generous passions" they had become disorderly and deranged.
"Public Persons" is the informal side of "The Public
Philosophy." Lippmann tries to account for the decline of Western
democracies and prescribe for their revival. He concludes that it
is not possible to discover by rational inquiry the conditions that
must be met if there is to be a good society. Lippmann saw tension
between private impulses and transcendent truth as the
"inexhaustible theme of human discourse." The occasional harmonies
in the lives of saints and the deeds of heroes and the excellence
of genius are glorious. But glory was the exception, wretchedness
the rule. In this casual volume both are given a human face.
Walter Lippmann is arguably the most influential journalist in
American history. From the time of Woodrow Wilson to the time of
Lyndon Johnson, what Walter Lippmann said mattered. His word was
valued because of his exceptional capacity for analysis, and
because he had the rare ability to make complex ideas and problems
manageable and understandable. Lippmann combined the practical and
the theoretical and saw them as inseparable. He savored the life of
the mind and relished the arena of politics. He was political
philosopher, social commentator, political advisor, and
activist-intellectual. As the country grappled with an impressive
influx of European ideas and with the threatening press of European
problems, so did Lippmann. Like President Wilson, he came to
believe that the condition of the modern world required that
America either act or be acted upon. New methods of communication
and propaganda meant that ideas contrary to America's would be
widely heard. Reformed liberalism and the projection of that
liberalism into a troubled world were the best hedge against
totalitarian schemes and imperialist aggression. The Stakes of
Diplomacy resulted from Lippmann's assignment by Wilson's Secretary
of War Baker, to a project for studying possible terms of peace and
ways to influence the world in a liberal-democratic direction. The
Stakes of Diplomacy ends both with admiration for the peaceful
nature of democracies and a plea for their further influence in the
world, and with an understanding that democracy's influence will
depend partly upon its physical might and geopolitical
collaboration. Lippmann stands as a prominent figure in America's
twentieth-century quest for power with honor. He concludes this
volume with the warning that there is no safe way and no morally
feasible way to turn back from our dangerous mission: "Unless the
people who are humane and sympathetic, the people who wish to live
and let live, are masters of the situation, the world faces an
indefinite vista of conquest and terror."
"The Good Society" is a critical text in the history of liberalism.
Initially a series of articles published in a variety of Lippmann's
favorite magazines, as the whole evolved, it became a frontal
assault against totalitarian tendencies within American society.
Lippmann took to task those who sought to improve the lot of
mankind by undoing the work of their predecessors and by
undermining movements in which men struggle to be free. This book
is a strong indictment of programs of reform that are at odds with
the liberal tradition, and it is critical of those who ask people
to choose between security and liberty. "The Good Society" falls
naturally into two segments. In the first, Lippmann shows the
errors and common fallacies of faith in government as the solution
to all problems. He says, "from left to right, from communist to
conservative. They all believe the same fundamental doctrine. All
the philosophies go into battle singing the same tune with slightly
different words." In the second part of the book, Lippmann offers
reasons why liberalism lost sight of its purpose and suggests the
first principles on which it can flourish again. Lippmann argues
that liberalism's revival is inevitable because no other system of
government can work, given the kind of economic world mankind
seeks. He did not write "The Good Society" to please adherents of
any political ideology. Lippmann challenges all philosophies of
government, and yet manages to present a positive program.
Bewildered liberals and conservatives alike will find this work a
successful effort to synthesize a theory of liberalism with the
practice of a strong democracy. Gary Dean Best has provided the
twenty-first century reader a clear-eyed context for interpreting
Lippmann's defense of classical liberalism. "The Good Society" is
the eleventh in a series of books written by Walter Lippmann
reissued by Transaction with new introductions and in a paperback
format. As with other major figures of the twentieth century such
as Thorstein Veblen, Peter Drucker, Margaret Mead, and Richard
Hoggart, these are classic books with contemporary perspectives.
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