1 comments about Disraeli (Profiles in Power Series).

1. Of the great political figures of Victorian Britain, few have attracted the attention of Benjamin Disraeli. A converted Jew from a family of merchants and the son of a noted literary scholar, he rose in an aristocratic age to become Prime Minister of Great Britain. While numerous biographies have been written about him, most concentrate on his ostentatious personality, the style that characterized the man. Ian Machin's brief study, a volume in the "Profiles in Power" series, focuses instead on the political side of Disraeli's life, examining the positions and tactics he adopted over the course of his long career in public life.
   
   Machin's book offers a good introduction to Disraeli and his politics, examining both his rise through the Tory ranks and his attitudes towards the prevailing issues in mid-Victorian politics.. His contention is that the quest for power is the dominant theme running through Disraeli's career. To achieve it, Disraeli adopted an opportunistic approach in advocating policies or principles, trimming his sails to catch the prevailing political wind. This is most readily apparent in his economic policy, where Disraeli's advocacy of protectionism (which led to the destruction of Sir Robert Peel's government in 1846) was abandoned six years later in an attempt to improve his party's odds of winning seats in Parliament. Even after the Conservatives finally took office with a majority government in 1874, Machin notes, Disraeli possessed no legislative agenda beyond pursuing reform measures that would appeal to the public in an increasingly democratic age.
   
   Though some might object to Machin's interpretation of Disraeli's career, this should not overshadow the overall qualities of the book. Balanced and insightful, it does a remarkable job of surveying Disraeli's life and career in such a short number of pages. For readers seeking to learn about this larger-than-life political figure, this is an excellent place to start.

5 comments about The Collected Speeches of Margaret Thatcher.

1. Margaret Thatcher dominated her party at a time when her party dominated British politics. This book is a valuable record of her formal speeches and the key parlamentary debates in which she took part. Robin Harris' editng makes the book easy to read and the policical philosophy of Margaret Thatcher comes through clearly from almost every page. In spite of the fact that he is obviously a commited supporter his notes and critiques of the individual speeches are relitivly disinterested and help to put them into context. Most interesting to me are the speeches made in the lengthy period during the mid 1980's when Margaret Thatcher gave few interviews; these formal speeches and her apparances in the House of Commons were the only means that the British electorate had of understanding overall government policy during that time. I was never a Thatcher supporter and believe she was ultimatly a extremely distructive politician who did infanatly more harm than good. This book, however, gives an excellent insight into the political philosophy behind the Thatcher phonominon and also gives clear clues as to why she was brought down so dramatically. A must for anyone who has any interest in post war British politics.



2. It is rare for books of 'collected speeches' or 'collected writings' not to be boring. But this book isn't. Perhaps because most if not all the speeches are thrilling and interesting, perhaps because they are excellently edited and written, perhaps because of their layout... All these things enabled the Rt. Hon. Lady Margaret The Baroness Thatcher to compile a truly fascinating collection of Her speeches during, before, and after Her years at Downing Street. For those interested in Thatcherism and British politics in general, this book will be an immensely valuable source of material, filled with easy-to-find data, information, and The Baroness Thatcher's views, on a variety of topics and issues, from Europe to the Falklands War, from international politics to tarde unions and taxing... For those of you who share the views and like the ways of The Baroness Thatcher, the book will be even more wonderful, as you'll be able to figure Her speak and debate, as if She were there, as you leaf through this excellent collection of Her speeches. For all others, it will still be excellent reading, pleasant and memorable.



3. I tell you, it's not easy to memorise every speech in this - but I'm working on it! An inspiring book by a very sexy lady.



4. .

   First published in 1997, and after the tremendous success of her memoirs "The Downing Street Years" and "The Path to Power", gathers fifty-nine of the Iron Lady's speeches, from her years as leader of the opposition, to her years as prime minister, to the time she stepped down in 1990, and through 1996.

   Edited by Robin Harris, her trusted aide and adviser, a member of the prime minister's Policy Unit, director of the the Conservative Research Department, and a regular contributor to British, European and American publications. Neither the brief introductions to each speech nor the footnotes are ever verbose--providing backgrounds which only help in setting out its context.

   Divided into The Opposition Years, The First Parliament, The Second Parliament, The Third Parliament, and After Downing Street, it is a most impressive selection from among Lady Thatcher's vast collection of speeches hitherto--the ones marking the most dramatic events of her time (the party conferences in opposition, the brief statement as she entered 10 Downing Street, after the IRA bombing in Brighton, amid the Falklands crisis, the Libya debate, the Gulf Crisis, and the speeches to The European Union and The House of Lords)--intensely revealing her character and unshakeable beliefs.

   The impression one gets is of one who is not merely stubborn--she passionately stands on her principles, unwavering in the face of even the most vehement opposition, and never shy to explain WHY. One who, whether in opposition, in power or after, did not merely go where the wind was already blowing--she moulded the Conservative Party to her convictions, inspired even the initially-oblivious, convinced the sceptical, led the opposed, woke Britain from its self-doubt and decline, leading it to a renewed role in international affairs that lives to this day. And while she is said to have put intense effort into the drafting and polishing of each of her speeches, it is the genuine belief she had in, and her thorough mastery of every subject she spoke of or against (whether it was the Conservative Party, or Britain, or European affairs, or the partnership with America) that renders each speech most effective, if not at times breathtakingly moving.

   Whether in admiration of Margaret Thatcher, or from a desire to study The Tories, or Britain, or great speeches, this is one book deserving of a place in one's study.
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5. There was once a time when orations and speeches of major players cast the mold for society and its subsequent historical frame. In the era of soundbites, that is far from true today. Speeches tend to be ignored save for the soundbites, and if the major points cannot be put into bulleted forms for display in the blue box above the newsanchor's shoulder, then often it will be ignored.

   I wasn't sure if this book of speeches was intended to be the third of a three-volume set of Margaret Thatcher's autobiography. I bought it, having worked in Parliament during her time and having taken a degree in the field. But as I re-read the speeches, they were often far less remarkable in print than I remember (those which I do remember, that is). And as for speeches delivered on the floor of the House of Commons, there is no way any verbatim transcript can convey the mood and atmosphere of the House -- Hansard recounting was often dry and dull when what I would remember would be uproarious.

   I found myself actually longing for a bulleted-point summary of each speech so that I could more easily find the important bits. The life Thatcher is able to give to her words fall flat on a printed page removed in time from the events surounding the speeches.

   This book will be invaluable to that very small number who make a special study of political communications. I cannot imagine this book being of any wider interest, as the interesting bits will be found in the more interesting biographical volumes. I've not noticed this volume being remaindered to a large extent, which means the publishing house which miscalculated the demand for Thatcher's second volume 'The Path to Power' realised the blunder in time to make this volume remain an expensive one to be had.

   Thus, you've got to really want it. And, in my opinion, unless you're a British political scholar, you won't.

   Please do not misunderstand me in this appraisal. Thatcher is a brilliant speaker. However, few politicians are gifted with circumstances that lend themselves to timeless speeches; the relatively few instances where the actually speeches will be relevant for the overall history of Thatcher's period have those necessary pieces already incorporated into the other history texts.

No comments about Winston S. Churchill: Finest Hour, 1939-1941 (Winston S. Churchill).

No comments about Eminent Churchillians.

No comments about The Life of Benjamin Disraeli, Earl of Beaconsfield: Volume 2. 1837-1846.

No comments about Winston Churchill: Winston Churchill (Historic Lives).

No comments about View from No. 11, The.

No comments about Winston and Clemintine: The Triumphs and Tragedies of the Churchills.

No comments about Winston Churchill - Biography of a Nobel Statesmen.

No comments about The Last Lion: Winston Spencer Churchill; Alone: 1932-1940.