The March of Folly: From Troy to Vietnam
Author(s): Barbara W. Tuchman
Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Barbara W. Tuchman, author of the World War I masterpiece "The Guns of August, " grapples with her boldest subject: the pervasive presence, through the ages, of failure, mismanagement, and delusion in government.
Drawing on a comprehensive array of examples, from Montezuma's senseless surrender of his empire in 1520 to Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor, Barbara W. Tuchman defines folly as the pursuit by government of policies contrary to their own interests, despite the availability of feasible alternatives. In brilliant detail, Tuchman illuminates four decisive turning points in history that illustrate the very heights of folly: the Trojan War, the breakup of the Holy See provoked by the Renaissance popes, the loss of the American colonies by Britain's George III, and the United States' own persistent mistakes in Vietnam.
Throughout "The March of Folly, " Tuchman's incomparable talent for animating the people, places, and events of history is on spectacular display.
VG. Inscription to the author page. Page edges are foxed and slightly tanned.
Product Information
"A glittering narrative . . . a moral book on the crimes and follies of governments and the misfortunes the governed suffer in consequence.""--The New York Times Book Review"
"An admirable survey . . . I haven't read a more relevant book in years."--John Kenneth Galbraith, "The Boston Sunday Globe"
"A superb chronicle . . . a masterly examination.""--Chicago Sun-Times"
General Fields
- :
- : Little, Brown Book Group Limited
- : Abacus
- : 01 January 1985
- : Great Britain
- : books
Special Fields
- : Barbara W. Tuchman
- : Paperback
- : 909/.09821
- : 559
