Beautiful Losers: Essays on the Failure of American Conservatism [Paperback]

Samuel Francis (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1, 1994

The 1992 presidential election campaign showed just how deep were the divisions within the Republican party.  In Beautiful Losers, Samuel Francis argues that the victory of the Democratic party marks not only the end of the Reagan-Bush era, but the failure of the American conservatism.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

This collection of provocative articles and review essays by a Washington Times columnist deals variously with the quarrel between the Old Right and the Neoconservatives, the emergence in the last decade of multiculturalism and political correctness, as well as the shifting of traditional moral, sexual and social norms. Three essays are especialy noteworthy: a controversial piece called "the Cult of Dr. King" considers the apotheosis of the slain civil rights leader; a discussion of Senator Joseph McCarthy explains why his ghost continues to haunt us 30 years after his death; and an illuminating reevaluation of Whittaker Chambers elevates his standing as an American writer. Francis argues that virtually every cause taken up by American conservatives over the past three decades has been lost and that the conservative movement has transformed itself into near-extinction. The New Right "must recognize that its values and goals lie outside and against the establishment and that its natural allies are not in Manhattan, Yale and Washington but in the increasingly alienated and threatened strata of Middle America."
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

"This collection of provocative articles and review essays by a Washington Times columnist deals variously with the quarrel between the Old Right and the Neoconservatives, the emergence in the last decade of multiculturalism and political correctness, as well as the shifting of traditional moral, sexual, and social norms."--Publishers Weekly

"In Beautiful Losers Samuel Francis stakes his claim as one of the most important conservative thinkers of our time. His work complements the efforts of an earlier generation of American conservatives who focused on defining and celebrating the 'social and cultural substratum' on which our freedom rests. His unique and valuable contribution has been to define the forces that threaten that freedom, while offering a framework within which we can fight to preserve it."--Chronicles

"Francis is a skilled prose stylist; his essays are often a pleasure to read for that reason alone."--Detroit News

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: University of Missouri (August 1, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0826209769
• ISBN-13: 978-0826209764
• Product Dimensions: 5.9 x 9.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,291,537 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 29 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant June 25, 2000

By Steve Jackson

Format:Paperback

This is a brilliant collection of essays by Dr. Samuel Francis, perhaps the leading paleoconservative writer today. As many people don't know, most of today's so-called "conservative" thinkers are in fact "neo-conservatives," or as Francis says "neo-liberals." They accept many of the premises of liberalism, but think liberalism went to far in the 70's. Rather than providing an alternative to the liberals, they are just another aspect of what Francis' mentor, James Burnham, called the "managerial class." This collection contains excellent essays on Martin Luther King, Joe McCarthy and other subjects.