Making Reputations: Power, Persuasion and the Individual in Modern British Politics

Description

Is a charismatic leader also an effective one? What role do commentators and historians have in shaping politicians' personae? Making Reputations provides a major new assessment of the role of individuals in British politics. The authors examine the personalities and rhetoric of key figures, such as Gladstone, Churchill, Thatcher and Blair, as well as shedding new light on other neglected but significant individuals. Drawing on a variety of methods from gender to cultural history, the book presents a comprehensive examination of the relationship between the individual and the pursuit, maintenance and execution of power.

Julie Gottlieb is Lecturer in History at University of Sheffield. She is author of 'Feminine Fascism' and co-author, with Thomas P. Linehan, of 'The Culture of Fascism' (both I.B. Tauris). Richard Toye is Lecturer in History at Homerton College, University of Cambridge.

'The contributions are never less than absorbing...'Trevor Russell, Public Servant, 7th October 2005