The Woven Figure: Conservatism and America's Fabric [Hardcover]

George F. Will (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 12, 1997

Whether the topic is inflation or the Gingrich revolution, this brilliant collection of essays, culled from hundreds written over the past few years by America's favorite curmudgeon and political commentator, brings new life, a stinging wit, and a good bite to modern conservatism.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

The sixth collection of George Will's syndicated op-ed columns finds the iconic conservative pundit complaining about abuse of the battered-woman syndrome defense and other "excuses" offered up in courts, overglorification of multiculturalism, the double entendres on Friends in the months before the 1996 presidential election, and an assortment of other manifestations of declining cultural values. ("When parents cannot watch early-evening television with their children without wincing, their distress will take on political coloration, and the winner of the nation's premier political office is apt to be he who best exemplifies credible disgust with what distresses them.") He also finds rays of hope, such as Eugene F. Rivers, a Jesuit who ministers to the people of Dorchester, Massachusetts, and the diligence of Cal Ripken: "On September 6, [1995] the nation was mesmerized by the spectacle of a man going to work, as usual. He works between Second and Third in Baltimore." --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

From Library Journal

Will (The Leveling Wind, LJ 11/1/94), who continues to be the favorite political columnist of intellectual conservatives, offers his ninth book and sixth collection of columns. Most of these 150 essays bear rereading, though some of the specific topics are already fading from memory. Will offers pointed and eloquent views on the major events of the past four years?among them, the Oklahoma City bombing ("From the Fevered Minds of Marginal Men"), Bob Dole and "Clinton the Inconsequential," the National History Standards, multiculturalism, the death of Allen Ginsberg, and appreciations of several historic leaders. While most of the essays are brief, a few longer and more contemplative pieces remind the reader of Will's depth and scholarship. This volume transcends political ideology and is highly recommended for public and academic libraries.?Thomas A. Karel, Franklin & Marshall Coll. Lib., Lancaster, Pa.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 384 pages
• Publisher: Scribner; First Edition edition (November 12, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0684825627
• ISBN-13: 978-0684825625
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.4 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,208,962 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars "The Woven Figure" carries an acerbic edge., December 6, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: The Woven Figure: Conservatism and America's Fabric (Hardcover)

George F. Will, America's bastion of conservative thought, has at last created an anthology of essays which serve not only to further American Conservatism, but examine the difficulties of it as well. Dr. Will maintains a sharply acerbic, at times sarcastic edge when dealing with liberalism, yet does not shield his fellow conservatives from the same. In this regard, Dr. Will has produced a vastly interesting book which manages to explore the virtues and vices of contemporary American Conservatism.

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book!, June 26, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: The Woven Figure: Conservatism and America's Fabric (Hardcover)

This compilation of George Will essays from 1994-1997 is a must for any fan of brilliant, concise, enthralling, humorous, insightful, witty, and unmistakably conservative (did I mention ingenious?) commentary. The Woven Figure is brainfood from America's (and hence the world's) foremost intellectual.

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars America's Greatest Essayist, February 17, 2001

By 

"justbrowsing" - See all my reviews

This review is from: The WOVEN FIGURE : CONSERVATISM AND AMERICA'S FABRIC (Paperback)

Yes, as one person complained, this book is "just" a compilation of Will's previously published columns & essays (with a few speeches thrown in as a bonus). That's a bit like saying that the King James Bible is "just" a compilation of the speeches of a few Hebrew prophets. George Will, with his class, wit, and insight makes Gore Vidal & HL Mencken look pitifully small. Not only is this book insightful, but I read it at the beach, so it's not as difficult as some might think.

This man walks with giants, and his ability to connect so many disparate events into one overarching theme would make Jerry Seinfeld proud. And it's not all the Republican party line, as some might suggest: to one person's comments that the Republican welfare reform of 1995 would lead to thousands of homeless dying on steam grates he says "actually, we'll have to build more grates."

Then this comment, an ispiration, on page 211: "In today's deregulated global economy, with highly mobile capital and an abundance of cheap labor, the long-term prosperity of an advanced nation is a function of a high rate of savings - the deferral of gratification that makes high rates of investment in capital, research, & development, and education. All these forms of social capital are good for society as a whole and are encouraged by high rewards for those who accept the discipline."

Or this, from page 259: "The postwar agenda of unideological `problem-solving' politics erased the distinction between problems that can be solved and conditions that must be endured."

Want a real education? Then read this book, along with "The Moral Obligation to Be Intelligent: Selected Essays", a collection of Lionel Trilling's greatest essays. You'll learn.