The Soul of a Leader: Character, Conviction, and Ten Lessons in Political Greatness

Waller R. Newell

Retail Price: $25.99 LS Price: $19.49 You Save: $6.50 (25%) Availability: Usually ships within 24 hours. Format: Hardcover, 352pp. ISBN: 9780061238543 Publisher: Harper Pub. Date: January 6, 2009 Average Customer Review:

Order This Book!   Secure Order Guarantee Item No: 9780061238543

What are we looking for in a leader?

Has the meaning of leadership changed?

Can history provide guidance for the leaders of a rising generation?

What defines the soul of a leader?

In The Soul of a Leader, political scientist and cultural commentator Waller R. Newell offers a fascinating perspective on the role of leadership in American life today. From the birth of democracy in Periclean Athens to the Founding Fathers' view of statesmanship, from the experiences of Abraham Lincoln to those of modern presidents, this far-reaching and provocative new book explores the many and diverse elements of good statesmanhip, including the timeless qualities all good leaders share. As Newell plumbs the depths of history, he illuminates the moral, psychological, and intellectual resources we inherit from the traditions of the West—traditions steeped in the experience and reflection on statecraft from ancient times onward—and offers a compass for the challenges America's next generation of leaders will face.

In this engaging blend of character portraiture, historical perspective, and contemporary political insight, Newell proposes a bold new perspective on the evolution of the modern American presidency, from Franklin Roosevelt to George W. Bush. He steps back in time to evaluate the clashing models of Lincoln and Robert E. Lee, as they captured the struggle for the soul of the American Republic. And, in an essay of masterful historical reach, he contemplates the roots of modern leadership in the story of what he calls "the West's first superpower conflict"—the epic battle between Athens and Sparta, with its echoes of both Vietnam and Iraq. Finally, he draws from these stories ten lessons in political greatness—lessons the next American president will be wise to heed.


Reviews

"Waller Newell’s fine book shows the love of honor at work in democratic times, when honor is disguised, diminished or eclipsed. Yet where is greatness without honor, and who can live without some share of greatness?"

—Harvey Mansfield, Professor of Government Harvard University

Waller R. Newell is a professor of political science and philosophy at Carleton University. A member of Ronald Reagan's presidential transition team, he is a longtime political and cultural commentator, and the author of previous books, including The Code of Man and What Is a Man?: 3,000 Years of Wisdom on the Art of Manly Virtue. A contributor to the Weekly Standard and other publications, he has been a fellow at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, D.C., and a John Adams Fellow at the Institute of United States Studies at the University of London.

	Introduction What Are We Looking for in a Leader?	1
I	A Generation Bids Farewell: The Saga of the Modern American Presidency	37
	The Titans: Winston Churchill and Franklin Delano Roosevelt	44
	Passing the Torch: John Fitzgerald Kennedy and Lyndon Baines Johnson	58
	The President as Enigma: Richard M. Nixon	69
	The President as Penitent: Jimmy Carter	78
	New Day in America: Ronald Reagan and the Evolution of a Statesman	85
	Why Was Reagan So Successful?	89
	Reagan's Foreign Policy	104
	The Uncertain Successor: George H. W Bush	107
	Return from the Wilderness: Bill Clinton	111
	Fortunate Son? George W. Bush and the End of a Saga	119
	The Presidential Algorithm	125
II	Democracy and Empire: Lessons in Leadership, from Napoleon to Lincoln	129
	The Tribe of the Eagle: Political Honor in a Democracy	136
	Leadership Ancient and Modern: The Dilemmas of the Founding Fathers	149
	Abraham Lincoln and the Soul of a Leader	162
	Lincoln's Political Principles	170
	The Great Antagonist: Robert E. Lee	186
	The Inner Lincoln	196
	A World Imperial Republic?	206
III	The First Democracy: Pericles, Athens, and the Challenge of Freedom	211
	The Two Superpowers: Athens and Sparta	228
	The Proxy War: Corinth Versus Corcyra	232
	The Conference at Sparta and the Widening Conflict	238
	The History of the Cold War	250
	Pericles' Funeral Oration and the Plague	256
	Dealing with Allies: The Revolt of Mitylene	268
	The Human Equivalent of the Plague: Civil War in Corcyra	273
	Nemesis: The Melian Dialogue and the Sicilian Expedition	276
	Back to the Future: Where Do We Go from Here?	302
	Conclusion: The TenSecrets of Leadership	311
	Index	329

A. Lincoln: A Biography