Politics of Fear [Hardcover]

Frank Furedi (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0826487289 | ISBN-13: 978-0826487285 | Publication Date: November 15, 2005

Furedi argues that the traditional terms "left" and "right" have been both distorted and proved inadequate by a number of developments, notably the Cold War, the Culture Wars and (as he's shown in previous books) the prevalance of risk-adverse managerialism. The result is a politics (both big P and little p) that fails to take humans seriously as humans and which, necessarily, evades discussion of right and wrong. Furedi shows that the single most important political need is for an adequate conception of humanity (and, in the process, the public) and that it is this that will produce a new and more imaginative alignment in politics.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Furedi, prolific author and professor of sociology at the University of Kent at Canterbury, wants people to believe in themselves again and to govern accordingly-in short, to stop being afraid. Trite as that may sound, Furedi's arguments are cogent, and rather than delving into the dense language of political theory and history, Furedi bypasses conventional left vs. right thinking and pontificates on the rifts in contemporary politics by examining the ways we commonly think about ourselves. Fear, Furedi writes, is the hallmark of contemporary western society (his arguments being strictly intended for those in the "free" world), citing as symptoms the fear of scientific and social progress (notably in a string of successful disaster flicks), using personal likes and dislikes to evaluate political candidates, and how terms of fear and mistrust have become common parlance for discussing politicians' merits. A new Enlightenment, in short, is Furedi's cure, but his thoughts on ushering in the new, while noble and largely apolitical, rely on "decent people who believe in their humanity and are willing to go against the grain. One step at a time." Forcefully argued, Furedi's book is a thoughtful, if idealistic, consideration of the prevalence of fear mongering.
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Review

Mention of book in piece on 'Bird flu Prophets of doom spread nothing but needles alarm'

(Frank Furedi Daily Express, The )

Article by Frank Furedi 'Politicians, economists, teachers...why are they so desperate to make us happy?'

(Frank Furedi Sunday Telegraph )

Mention of book in piece on 'Bird flu Prophets of doom spread nothing but needles alarm'

(, Daily Express, The )

Article by Frank Furedi 'Politicians, economists, teachers...why are they so desperate to make us happy?'

(, Sunday Telegraph )

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 208 pages
• Publisher: Continuum (November 15, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0826487289
• ISBN-13: 978-0826487285
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.2 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,225,852 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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4 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A left Enlightenment manifesto, April 16, 2008

By 

M. A. Krul (London, United Kingdom) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Politics of Fear (Paperback)

Frank Furedi, formerly leader and founder of the small socialist group the Revolutionary Communist Party (Furedi), has written "Politics of Fear" as a new (left) Enlightenment manifesto for our times. Railing against the familiar claim of "There Is No Alternative", he traces this much further than mere neoliberalism. Instead, he argues that the past few decades have seen an enormously widening gap between the ideas of the elite that rule our Western nations and the people they govern, causing the former to be in confusion and doubt over their own values and vision and lack thereof, and the latter to be disenchanted and to retreat from the political sphere.

This in turn leads to a gradual erosion of democracy, when substantial party politics led by ideological vision is replaced by interest group lobbying, lifestyle-based politics and fearmongering. Furedi brilliantly pillories the elitist notions underlying such nice sounding concepts as "social inclusiveness" (which means papering over all conflict and disagreement), "participation and 'having your say'" (which gives everyone a voice, but nobody any real influence) as well as the much trumpeted importance of NGOs and the 'civil society', most of whose leadership consist of professional lobbyists and upper middle class administrators with no incentive to be democratic. He attaches to this a tirade against the politics of fear and a modern "conservatism of fear", which is caused, according to Furedi, because the ruling class has rejected both history (as evil) and the future (as dangerous), and has become so enmeshed in a worldview of total administration of individuals without vision or control that it has totally rejected any possibility of risk or change being good. The exact connection of this to the 'democracy deficit' is not really established, but can be imagined.

Unfortunately, this strongly worded book is marred by the usual flaws of modern 'left Enlightenment' dissent, namely an excessive reliance on the power and greatness of technological discoveries, severed from their social and economic context (i.e., scientism), and an insipid and juvenile anti-environmentalism. Also, Furedi occasionally goes so far in his rejection of the manipulations of the disaffected elite that he starts sounding positively like a liberal conservative, Hayekian style; for example in his outright rejection of government intervention in children's health and child-raising, which in my view are important and legitimate subjects for government intervention. The problem in these cases, as with environmental issues, is not government intervention, but intervention by the wrong government and on the wrong basis. If these flaws could be overcome, the Furedian humanism is one I could definitely subscribe to. All readers interested in political culture should enjoy this book, in particular Will Podmore.