The True Believer : Thoughts on the Nature of Mass Movements

Thoughts on the Nature of Mass Movements

By: Eric Hoffer

Write A Review

Paperback | 1 November 2002 | Edition Number 2

At a Glance

Paperback
192 Pages

Dimensions(cm)
20 x 12.5 x 1.5

Paperback

RRP $25.95

$24.75

or 4 interest-free payments of $6.19 with

Ships in 3 to 5 business days

“Its theme is political fanaticism, with which it deals severely and brilliantly.” —New Yorker

The famous bestseller with “concise insight into what drives the mind of the fanatic and the dynamics of a mass movement” (Wall Street Journal) by the legendary San Francisco longshoreman.

A stevedore on the San Francisco docks in the 1940s, Eric Hoffer wrote philosophical treatises in his spare time while living in the railroad yards. The True Believer—the first and most famous of his books—was made into a bestseller when President Eisenhower cited it during one of the earliest television press conferences.

Called a “brilliant and original inquiry” and “a genuine contribution to our social thought” by Arthur Schlesinger, Jr., this landmark in the field of social psychology is completely relevant and essential for understanding the world today as it delivers a visionary, highly provocative look into the mind of the fanatic and a penetrating study of how an individual becomes one.

Industry Reviews

"The True Believer glitters with icy wit. . . bristles with deadly parallels. . . . It is a harsh and potent mental tonic." -- New York Times

"If you want concise insight into what drives the mind of the fanatic and the dynamics of a mass movement at their most primal level, may I suggest an evening with Eric Hoffer." -- John McDonough, Wall St. Journal

"[Hoffer] is a student of extraordinary perception and insight. The range of his reading and research is vast, amazing. He has written one of the most provocative books of our immediate day." -- Christian Science Monitor

"Its theme is political fanaticism, with which it deals severely and brilliantly. . . . It owes its distinction to the fact that Hoffer is a born generalizer, with a mind that inclines to the wry epigram and icy aphorism as naturally as did that of the Duc de La Rochefoucauld." -- The New Yorker

"Hoffer has outlined a remarkably clear and suggestive theory about the kind of social change he sums up as 'mass movements, ' supplied concrete illustrative materials drawn from a wide historical range, and put them together in a brief, readable, and provocative book." -- New York Herald Tribune

"This brilliant and original inquiry into the nature of mass movements is a genuine contribution to our social thought." -- Arthur Schlesinger, Jr.

Shipping

	Standard Shipping	Express Shipping
Metro postcodes:	$9.99	$14.95
Regional postcodes:	$9.99	$14.95
Rural postcodes:	$9.99	$14.95

Orders over $0.00 qualify for free shipping.

How to return your order

At Booktopia, we offer hassle-free returns in accordance with our returns policy. If you wish to return an item, please get in touch with Booktopia Customer Care.

Additional postage charges may be applicable.

Defective items

If there is a problem with any of the items received for your order then the Booktopia Customer Care team is ready to assist you.

For more info please visit our Help Centre.

You Can Find This Book In

Non-Fiction Philosophy Social & Political Philosophy Politics & Government Sociology & Anthropology Mind, Body, Spirit Thought and Practice Psychology Social Psychology

Preface	p. xi
The Appeal of Mass Movements
The Desire for Change	p. 3
The Desire for Substitutes	p. 12
The Interchangeability of Mass Movements	p. 16
The Potential Converts
The Role of the Undesirables in Human Affairs	p. 24
The Poor	p. 26
The New Poor	p. 26
The Abjectly Poor	p. 27
The Free Poor	p. 31
The Creative Poor	p. 34
The Unified Poor	p. 34
Misfits	p. 46
The Inordinately Selfish	p. 48
The Ambitious Facing Unlimited Opportunities	p. 49
Minorities	p. 50
The Bored	p. 51
The Sinners	p. 53
United Action and Self-sacrifice
Preface	p. 58
Factors Promoting Self-sacrifice	p. 62
Identification with a Collective Whole	p. 62
Make-believe	p. 66
Deprecation of the Present	p. 68
"Things Which Are Not"	p. 76
Doctrine	p. 79
Fanaticism	p. 83
Mass Movements and Armies	p. 88
Unifying Agents	p. 91
Hatred	p. 91
Imitation	p. 101
Persuasion and Coercion	p. 105
Leadership	p. 111
Action	p. 120
Suspicion	p. 124
The Effects of Unification	p. 126
Beginning and End
Men of Words	p. 130
The Fanatics	p. 143
The Practical Men of Action	p. 147
Good and Bad Mass Movements	p. 153
The Unattractiveness and Sterility of the Active Phase	p. 153
Some Factors Which Determine the Length of the Active Phase	p. 157
Useful Mass Movements	p. 162
Notes	p. 169
Table of Contents provided by Syndetics. All Rights Reserved.

The True Believer : Thoughts on the Nature of Mass Movements

Thoughts on the Nature of Mass Movements

At a Glance

Paperback

Industry Reviews

Shipping

How to return your order

Defective items

You Can Find This Book In

More in Social & Political Philosophy

Review of Mein Kampf by Adolf Hitler

ERIS gems

Utopia for Realists

And How We Can Get There

Nineteen Eighty-Four

Collins Classics

12 Rules for Life

Antidote to Chaos

The Communist Manifesto

Penguin Classics

Helpem Fren

Australia and the Regional Assistance Mission to Solomon Islands 2003â"2017

Animal Farm

Collins Classics

Discipline and Punish

The Birth of the Prison

21 Lessons for the 21st Century

'Truly mind-expanding... Ultra-topical' Guardian

Capitalist Realism

Is there no alternative?

The Human Condition

Second Edition

The Prince

Environmental Equity in China and Beyond

Past, Present, and Future

How to Fall in Love with the Future

A Time Traveller's Guide to Changing the World

French Ethics and the Economics of Freedom

From Politics to Moral Obligation

The Social Roots Of Asian American Partisanship

From Political Learning to Partisan Leanings

The Social Roots Of Asian American Partisanship

From Political Learning to Partisan Leanings

The Fugitive Blacksmith And Other Essential Writings By James Wc Pennington

Oxford New Histories of Philosophy

Large Print - Leviathan, Volume 1 of 3 - Grand Type Collector's Edition - Matte Hardcover with Dust Jacket

Leviathan, Large Print Multi-Volume Set

Large Print - Leviathan, Volume 2 of 3 - Grand Type Collector's Edition - Matte Hardcover with Dust Jacket

Leviathan, Large Print Multi-Volume Set

Property Disobedience As Protest

Rethinking Political Nonviolence

Hood Feminism

Notes from the Women White Feminists Forgot

The Challenge of the Future

What Should We Keep from Yesterday as We Rush into Tomorrow?

Legendary Tales of the Australian Aborigines

This product is categorised by