Description
Book SynopsisA critical assessement of the problems of sincerity and truth in politics argues that we should accept hypocrisy as a fact of politics without resigning ourselves to it or embracing it, drawing on the lessons of such thinkers as Hobbes, Mandeville, Jefferson, Bentham, Sigwick, and Orwell.
Trade Review"One of Sunday Times's Best Books in Politics for 2008"
"A very intelligent, subtle, and learned guide to the classics and to the pre-eminent historical examples of hypocrisy from Mandeville and Hobbes to Jefferson and the Victorians."
---David Martin, Times Literary Supplement"[
Political Hypocrisy] is highly readable and contains a plethora of shrewd and quotable remarks. . . . What struck a chord with me was [Runciman's] gentle demolition of the idea that a politician's profession of his own sincerity, or passionate belief, proves anything at all."
---Samuel Brittan, Financial Times"Journalists and pundits notoriously pounce on any evidence of hypocrisy. . . . Runciman takes a far more textured, sophisticated approach to the phenomenon in
Political Hypocrisy, a timely, long overdue study of one of public life's in-your-face puzzles."
---Carlin Romano, Philadelphia Inquirer"A subtle, impressively intelligent discussion of a topic that's on just about everybody's mind."
---David Willetts, Prospect"More praise for Political Hypocrisy"
---Tim Dunne, Times Higher Education"
Political Hypocrisyis not just another denunciation of politicians as liars. Instead, it offers us a tour, from Hobbes and Mandeville to Bentham and Orwell. Runciman is best on the American revolutionaries and our eminent Victorians, perhaps because both the US war of independence and British empire required self-aware democratic politicians to gloss over the gaps between their proclaimed beliefs and their actual behaviour."
---Richard King, Australian Literary Review"Runciman's book should be appreciated for its attempt to present an alternate--and historical--approach to the issue of political hypocrisy. He successfully delves into the many fine distinctions that make up each theorist's approach and response to hypocrisy, which is particularly useful for a topic that so utterly lacks a clear division between black and white, and what is right and wrong."
---Kiku Huckle, Peace and Justice Studies
