Tyranny from Plato to Trump: Fools, Sycophants, and Citizens
- ISBN-10
- 1538160498
- ISBN-13
- 9781538160497
- Category
- History
- Language
- English
- Published
- 2022
- Publisher
- Rowman & Littlefield
- Author
- Andrew Fiala
Description
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 theatre and tragedy of contemporary US politics can be distilled down into the behavior of three actors: the tyrant, the sycophant and the moron. The bad news is that there have always been morons, sycophants, and tyrants. The good news is that once we know this, we can prepare a response. This book clarifies exactly what it means to be a tyrant, a moron, and a sycophant, and what these moral failures are common. At times, each of us can be tyrannical, moronic, and sycophantic. That is why we need reason and virtue, as well as a political system that restrains our worst inclinations. The ancient Greeks understood this, as did the American founders. The Trump era would be familiar to the Greeks and can help us understand the whirlwind of political theatre that has dominated our contemporary society.
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