Description
Book SynopsisInsulting the president is an American tradition. From Washington to Trump, presidents have been called lazy, feeble, pusillanimous, and more. Our leaders have been derided as ignoramuses, idiots, morons, and fatheads, and have been compared to all manner of animals--worms and whales and hyenas, sad jellyfish, strutting crows, lap dogs, reptiles, and monkeys.Political insults tell us what we value in our leaders by showing how we devalue them. In Dangerous Crooked Scoundrels, linguist Edwin Battistella collects over five hundred insults aimed at American presidents. Covering the broad sweep of American history, he puts insults in their place-the political and cultural context of their times. Along the way, Battistella illustrates the recurring themes of political insults: too little intellect or too much, inconsistency or obstinacy, worthlessness, weakness, dishonesty, sexual impropriety, appearance, and more. The kinds of insults we use suggest what our culture finds most hurtful, and reveal society''s changing prejudices as well as its most enduring ones. How we insult presidents and how they react tells us about the presidents, but it also tells us about our nation''s politics. Readers discover how the style of insults evolves in different historical periods: gone are apostate, mountebank, flathead, and doughface. Say hello to moron, jerk, asshole, and flip-flopper. Dangerous Crooked Scoundrels covers the broad sweep of American history, from the founder''s debates over the nature of government to world wars and culture wars and social media. Whatever your politics, you''ll find Dangerous Crooked Scoundrels an invaluable source of invigorating invective-and a healthy perspective on today''s political climate.
Trade ReviewThis is an easy-to-read, enjoyable book, accessible to every reader and particularly timely given the current political climate. Highly recommended. Lower-division undergraduates through faculty and professionals; general readers. * P. J. Kurtz, Minot State University, CHOICE *
Battistella takes readers on a delightful tour of US presidents, highlighting the names they were called and the insults and critiques they faced from their colleagues and the media of the day. Part linguistics text, part history, and part humor, this is an easy-to-read, enjoyable book, accessible to every reader and particularly timely given the current political climate. . . . A fascinating read for historians, linguists, and students of journalism in particular, but of interest to all. * CHOICE *
It was a pleasure to read a book that made me laugh aloud. Edwin Battistella has done an impressive job of documenting and explaining the history of presidential ignominy. I suspect that readers will be sending him their favorite insults for the next edition. * Donald A. Ritchie, Senate historian emeritus *
Though our Twitter-dominated era may seem uniquely venomous, this wise, witty and thoroughly entertaining history of American political insults proves otherwise. Word-lovers will delight in linguistEdwin Battistella's resurrection of once-deadly insults such as'mountebank' and 'dastardly poltroon.'More important is the compelling caseDangerous Crooked Scoundrelsmakes that our precious freedom of speech has always rested on the ability to openly criticize and even insult our highest elected officials. * Charles Slack, author of Liberty's First Crisis *
Dangerous, Crooked Scoundrels takes a deep dive into America's long history of attacks on the president, not only exploring the insults themselves, but placing them in the context of their times. It's an engaging, thought-provoking look at a tradition as old as the republic and as immediate as the next election. * Rosemarie Ostler, author of Splendiferous Speech *
Table of ContentsChapter 1: Insults and Politics Chapter 2: Founders, 1788-1824 Chapter 3: The Rise of the Common Man, 1824-1860 Chapter 4: A Nation Remade, 1860-1900 Chapter 5: The Modern Presidency, 1900-1945 Chapter 6: A World Power, 1945-1980 Chapter 7: Culture Wars, 1980-2018 A Catalog of Presidential Insults Acknowledgements Sources & Bibliography Index
