Neoconservatism: The Biography of a Movement

Awards:   Nominated for Arthur Ross Book Award 2011 Nominated for J. David Greenstone Book Prize 2011 Nominated for Merle Curti Award 2011
Author:   Justin Vaïsse ,  Arthur Goldhammer
Publisher:   Harvard University Press
ISBN:  

9780674060708


Pages:   376
Publication Date:   18 March 2011
Format:   Paperback
Availability:   In Print   Availability explained
This item will be ordered in for you from one of our suppliers. Upon receipt, we will promptly dispatch it out to you. For in store availability, please contact us.

Our Price $52.67 Quantity:  
Add to Cart

Share |

Neoconservatism: The Biography of a Movement


Add your own review!

Awards

  • Nominated for Arthur Ross Book Award 2011
  • Nominated for J. David Greenstone Book Prize 2011
  • Nominated for Merle Curti Award 2011

Overview

"Neoconservatism has undergone a transformation that has made a clear identity almost impossible to capture. The Republican foreign policy operatives of the George W. Bush era seem far removed from the early liberal intellectuals who focused on domestic issues. Justin Vaïsse offers the first comprehensive history of neoconservatism, exploring the connections between a changing and multifaceted school of thought, a loose network of thinkers and activists, and American political life in turbulent times. In an insightful portrait of the neoconservatives and their impact on public life, Vaïsse frames the movement in three distinct ages: the New York intellectuals who reacted against the 1960s leftists; the ""Scoop Jackson Democrats,"" who tried to preserve a mix of hawkish anticommunism abroad and social progress at home but failed to recapture the soul of the Democratic Party; and the ""Neocons"" of the 1990s and 2000s, who are no longer either liberals or Democrats. He covers neglected figures of this history such as Pat Moynihan, Eugene Rostow, Lane Kirkland, and Bayard Rustin, and offers new historical insight into two largely overlooked organizations, the Coalition for a Democratic Majority and the Committee on the Present Danger. He illuminates core developments, including the split of liberalism in the 1960s, and the shifting relationship between partisan affiliation and foreign policy positions. Vaïsse gives neoconservatism its due as a complex movement and predicts it will remain an influential force in the American political landscape."

Full Product Details

Author:   Justin Vaïsse ,  Arthur Goldhammer
Publisher:   Harvard University Press
Imprint:   The Belknap Press
Dimensions:   Width: 15.60cm , Height: 2.30cm , Length: 23.50cm
Weight:   0.426kg
ISBN:  

9780674060708


ISBN 10:   0674060709
Pages:   376
Publication Date:   18 March 2011
Audience:   College/higher education ,  Professional and scholarly ,  Tertiary & Higher Education ,  Professional & Vocational
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   In Print   Availability explained
This item will be ordered in for you from one of our suppliers. Upon receipt, we will promptly dispatch it out to you. For in store availability, please contact us.
Language:   English

Table of Contents

Reviews

The influential neoconservative movement is a complex and often surprising thing...Vaisse examines the intellectual evolution of leading neocon thinkers like Norman Podhoretz, Daniel Patrick Moynihan, and William Kristol; explores the impact of neocon journals and think tanks; and recounts the movement's love-hate relationships with Democratic and Republican administrations. His critical but evenhanded treatment brims with insights... Vaisse's is one of the most lucid and sophisticated accounts yet of this crucial political force. Publishers Weekly 20100322 Justin Vaisse demonstrates that an ideology can have just as prickly a personality, and can be just as dynamic, as any celebrity...Surveying not only the political and cultural contributions of icons Norman Podhoretz and William Kristol, but also less frequently discussed figures such as Eugene Rostow and Bayard Rustin, Vaisse presents an influential and deeply polarizing set of intellectuals evenhandedly. -- Josh Lambert Tablet 20100503 Very intelligent and well-researched. -- Adam Kirsch Tablet 20100601 The proper way to commence appraisal of this admirable book is possibly by proposing a public service award of some sort for Justin Vaisse. This U.S.-based French foreign-policy scholar makes it feasible at long last to figure out what in blue blazes people are talking about when they praise or, more commonly at present, flog the neocons. ...A major virtue of Mr. Vaisse's painstakingly clear and beautifully executed narrative is its intellectually scrupulous tone: no malice; no abrasive score-settling. The author seeks neither to exalt nor vilify his subjects. -- William Murchison Washington Times 20100608 Essential reading for anyone wishing to understand the contours of our recent political past. -- Barry Gewen New York Times Book Review 20100613 [Vaisse] has written a book on neoconservatism that is thoughtful and well-informed...In a crowded field, Vaisse has written a fine primer, judicious, thorough and sure-footed. -- Rich Lowry Washington Post 20100704 [A] fascinating book...Vaisse provides a cogent analysis of neoconservative thought and beliefs. -- John Hancock Concord Monitor 20100718 Vaisse's book is the best yet to appear on the neoconservatives. It is comprehensive, searching, highly critical, but also dispassionate in tone. -- Anatol Lieven New Humanist 20100701 A great strength of Vaisse's book is his stress on the second age of neoconservatism, which spans the gap between the Public Interest writers and the national greatness drumbeaters of today...No one who absorbs Vaisse's discussion of this second age can harbor any illusions about whether the neocons count as genuine conservatives...Vaisse...[has] provided...tools that will help us understand a pernicious political movement. -- David Gordon The American Conservative blog 20101028 [Vaisse] provides an unusually nuanced and historically grounded account of the controversial neo-conservative movement--tracing its origins to disputes among New York liberals in revolt against the excesses of the 1960s. -- Gideon Rachman Financial Times 20101126 [An] excellent book...Essentially, Vaisse sees modern neoconservatism as a species of nationalism or patriotism. -- Richard King The Australian 20101201


The influential neoconservative movement is a complex and often surprising thing...Vaisse examines the intellectual evolution of leading neocon thinkers like Norman Podhoretz, Daniel Patrick Moynihan, and William Kristol; explores the impact of neocon journals and think tanks; and recounts the movement's love-hate relationships with Democratic and Republican administrations. His critical but evenhanded treatment brims with insights... Vaisse's is one of the most lucid and sophisticated accounts yet of this crucial political force. Publishers Weekly 20100322 Justin Vaisse demonstrates that an ideology can have just as prickly a personality, and can be just as dynamic, as any celebrity...Surveying not only the political and cultural contributions of icons Norman Podhoretz and William Kristol, but also less frequently discussed figures such as Eugene Rostow and Bayard Rustin, Vaisse presents an influential and deeply polarizing set of intellectuals evenhandedly. -- Josh Lambert Tablet 20100503 Very intelligent and well-researched. -- Adam Kirsch Tablet 20100601 The proper way to commence appraisal of this admirable book is possibly by proposing a public service award of some sort for Justin Vaisse. This U.S.-based French foreign-policy scholar makes it feasible at long last to figure out what in blue blazes people are talking about when they praise or, more commonly at present, flog the neocons. ...A major virtue of Mr. Vaisse's painstakingly clear and beautifully executed narrative is its intellectually scrupulous tone: no malice; no abrasive score-settling. The author seeks neither to exalt nor vilify his subjects. -- William Murchison Washington Times 20100608 Essential reading for anyone wishing to understand the contours of our recent political past. -- Barry Gewen New York Times Book Review 20100613 [Vaisse] has written a book on neoconservatism that is thoughtful and well-informed...In a crowded field, Vaisse has written a fine primer, judicious, thorough and sure-footed. -- Rich Lowry Washington Post 20100704 [A] fascinating book...Vaisse provides a cogent analysis of neoconservative thought and beliefs. -- John Hancock Concord Monitor 20100718 Vaisse's book is the best yet to appear on the neoconservatives. It is comprehensive, searching, highly critical, but also dispassionate in tone. -- Anatol Lieven New Humanist 20100701


Author Information

Justin Vaïsse, a French historian of the United States, is Director of Policy Planning at the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Tab Content 6

Author Website:  

Customer Reviews

Recent Reviews

No review item found!

Add your own review!

Countries Available

All regions
Latest Reading Guide

wl

Shopping Cart
Your cart is empty
Shopping cart
Mailing List