Tyranny from Plato to Trump : fools, sycophants, and citizens / Andrew Fiala.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Fiala, Andrew, 1966- author.

Contributor:

Bloomsbury (Firm), publisher.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Trump, Donald, 1946-.

Trump, Donald.

Despotism.

Political culture--United States.

Political culture.

United States.

Physical Description:

xvi, 240 pages ; 24 cm

Distribution:

New York : Bloomsbury Publishing(US), 2022.

Place of Publication:

Lanham, Maryland : Rowman & Littlefield, 2022.

Summary:

"Questions about how and why the Trump era happened prompt us to think about universal themes in politics, philosophy, and morality. This book shows how the theater and tragedy of contemporary US politics can be distilled down into the behavior of three actors: the tyrant, the sycophant, and the moron"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

Part I: Historical, political, and theological contexts. 1. From Trump to Plato and back again. Trump: 2021 ; Plato: 375 BCE ; Trump: 2016 ; Conclusion: Tragic love and the problem of polarization

2. Tyranny as a theological problem. Modest humanism ; Is God a tyrant? ; Paganism and Trumpism ; Inspirational moral leaders ; The Trump difference ; Conclusion: God is not a tyrant

3. The tragic trio and the midwife who enlightens. Tyranny is in the eye of the beholder ; Our fundamental brokenness ; Tyranny trumps truth ; Tyranny over the mind ; Trump is a symptom ; Conclusion: The midwife who opens our eyes

4. Political tragedy and historical wisdom. Philosophical history ; Aristotle, Trump, and Alexander the Great ; The problem of living within history ; The common story of toil and trouble ; Tyrants everywhere ; Conclusion: Wisdom, virtue, and democratic education

Appendix A: Trump's view of morality in context

Appendix B: The cast of characters and key events.

Part II: The tragic hero. 5. The tyrant's pride: on ambition, power, and greatness. Fashionable tyranny ; Defining tyranny ; A tyrannical soul does not a tyrant make ; Exorbitant power ; Revolutions and transitions ; Hubris ; Greatness is not goodness ; Conclusion: The goodness of goodness

6. The fool's stupidity: on willful and vicious ignorance. Violence is fun ; Who are you calling a moron? ; Infantilization and accountability ; Defining foolishness ; Ignorance and the big lie ; Conclusion: fools want to believe fake news

7. The sycophant's complicity: on cunning, flattery, and the Trojan horse. Defining sycophancy ; Sycophants and flatterers from Socrates to Seneca ; Opportunism, contortionism, and political performance art ; Complicity and structures of power ; Flattering the tyrant and the mob ; Conclusion: The Trojan horse

Part III: Remedies and solutions. 8. Wisdom, vigilance, and the citizen-philosopher. A few good men ; Conflicting patriotisms ; Nobody's free until everybody's free ; Philo-politics and philosophical friendship ; Vigilance, resistance, and complicity ; Civic and moral education ; Conclusion: vigilance and accountability in an unthinking culture

9. The constitution of wisdom. Montesquieu, Madison, and Mike Pence ; The evolving constitution ; The tragic truth of political philosophy ; Republicanism triumphs against Trump ; Hitler, Mussolini, and real tyranny ; The wise dysfunction of mixed government ; The near fatal flaw of slavery ; A tragic conclusion

10. Conclusion

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 209-234) and index.

Description based on print version record and CIP data provided by publisher.

ISBN:

979-88-8186-700-3

1-5381-6049-8

OCLC:

1262964744