The Penguin Book of 20th-Century Speeches [Paperback]

Brian MacArthur (Editor)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0140285008 | ISBN-13: 978-0140285000 | Publication Date: May 1, 2000

For better, for worse, the great public speakers have always had the power to change the world. Brian MacArthur's anthology includes the most famous and notorious speeches delivered in English since 1899 as well as speeches in translation by Lenin, Stalin, Mussolini and Castro among others. From Vaclav Havel to Martin Luther King, and from Hitler winning over the industrialists to Churchill rousing the English, this anthology contains many of the masterpieces that helped shape the 20th Century. This edition has been full revised and new speeches added.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Brian MacArthur is Associate Editor of The Times, and was the founder editor of both Today newspaper and The Times Higher Educational Supplement. For Penguin he has edited the highly successful books of TWENTIETH-CENTURY PROTEST and HISTORIC SPEECHES.

Product Details

• Paperback: 560 pages
• Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics) (May 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0140285008
• ISBN-13: 978-0140285000
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.1 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #242,147 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars One picture of history, not the only one, September 24, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: The Penguin Book of 20th-century Speeches (Hardcover)

This is a compilation of some very important speeches from the twentieth century, and some not so important ones. The author has chosen speeches mainly from the Western world, especially the United States and Great Britain. Most of the orators are men (need that be pointed out?:)) Naturally, this has the consequence that the result is a very incomplete picture. Bearing that in mind, however, there are some really good speeches here, and some very interesting. Reading this book is like reading a book on recent history.

Since these texts are authentic speeches, you actually get the feeling of being THERE. Reading some speeches really gave me an idea of how it made the listeners feel ... and sometimes, that was a rather creepy feeling. There are some really thought-provoking speeches in this book, such as one of my favourites: what will happen when we start use planes to bomb entire cities? The speech is called "The bomber will always get through" and the orator was Stanley Baldwin. Most of us are so young that we do not remember a world where wars were fought differently; when that option did not exist.

Each speech has a short introduction where the orator is placed in his or her context, and often, at the end, a few lines about what happened next. The speeches are chronologically arranged, not thematically. Whereas these introductions are of a high quality, they are not sufficient for a reader who is not rather well acquainted with the history of the Western world of the 20th century. If that is the case, I would recommend to read a general introduction first.

This book focuses clearly on political speeches, although there are exceptions. Students of political science will undoubtedly find it useful as a general companion book, but it is interesting for anyone who is interested in the recent political development. These speeches are not the only factors that have influenced that development, but orators often pick up current trends and issues, even before television.

I recommend this book with the caution that it does not give a full picture, it does not even aim to give a full picture and reading this book solely would give anyone a very strange idea about the history of the 20th century in the Western world. Read it with other books, and do not take this as THE truth ... it is a good and interesting read, provided you have a good portion of healthy criticism.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Very good, but editor's judgment biased?, October 31, 2001

By 

x "x" (CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Penguin Book of 20th-Century Speeches (Paperback)

I found this collection to be quite through and wide-ranging, overall very good. The only criticism I have is that the editor and publisher display a Great Britain bias. Numerous speeches by members of Parliamant, etc. are included, despite their seemingly limited subject matter and relative lack of eloquence. I would have preferred that other speakers from around the world have their presence included or increased or, simply, to have had these speeches omitted.

That said, however, I reiterate that it is a fine edition, worth the reader's time and money.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Beyond the sound bites, November 7, 2000

By 

John M "jpmcad" (Alexandria, VA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Penguin Book of 20th-Century Speeches (Paperback)

This book is a wonderful opportunity to go beyond the soundbites of famous quotes. "Ask not what your country can do for you," ask what else Kennedy said that day. This collection of speeches provides context to many of the most famous lines of the last century -- such as Churchill's Iron Curtain speech, King's I have a dream speech, and FDR's The only thing we have to fear speech. there are also lesser known speeches from the likes of Ghandi,Lloyd George and Henry Cabot Lodge. Pick this book up and add it to your collection.