The monarchy of fear

a philosopher looks at our political crisis

249 pages

English language

Published Jan. 21, 2018

ISBN:
978-1-5011-7249-6
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OCLC Number:
989964017

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(1 review)

"From one of the world's most celebrated moral philosophers comes a thorough examination of the current political crisis and recommendations for how to mend our divided country. For decades Martha C. Nussbaum has been an acclaimed scholar and humanist, earning dozens of honors for her books and essays. In The Monarchy of Fear she turns her attention to the current political crisis that has polarized American since the 2016 election. Although today's atmosphere is marked by partisanship, divisive rhetoric, and the inability of two halves of the country to communicate with one another, Nussbaum focuses on what so many pollsters and pundits have overlooked. She sees a simple truth at the heart of the problem: the political is always emotional. Globalization has produced feelings of powerlessness in millions of people in the West. That sense of powerlessness bubbles into resentment and blame. Blame of immigrants. Blame of Muslims. Blame of …

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This was a really good overview of fear, along with some closely related emotions, and how they affects people and politics. Most of the chapters focus on fear, disgust, misogyny, and similar concepts, while the last chapter tries to looks forward towards more productive idead of how to change things.

Other than that final chapter this book was fantastic, but the final chapter on hope felt rather naive and occasionally unfocused. The book was written after Trump's first election, and I read it shortly after his second; it may just be terrible timing, but it's Nussbaum's point feels like it isn't strong enough to combat the reality that this climate of fear has put us in. 

Subjects

  • Political psychology
  • Politics and government
  • Political culture
  • Philosophy
  • Polarization (Social sciences)
  • Political science
  • Psychological aspects
  • Fear

Places

  • United States