In Praise of Intransigence: The Perils of Flexibility

ISBN-13: 9780199334988 / Angielski / Twarda / 2014 / 200 str.

Richard H. Weisberg

Opis

Flexibility is usually seen as a virtue in today's world. Even the dictionary seems to dislike those who stick too hard to their own positions. The thesaurus links "intransigence" to a whole host of words signifying a distaste for loyalty to fixed positions: intractable, stubborn, Pharisaic, close-minded, and stiff-necked, to name a few.

In this short and provocative book, constitutional law professor Richard H. Weisberg asks us to reexamine our collective cultural bias toward flexibility, open-mindedness, and compromise. He argues that flexibility has not fared well over the course of history. Indeed, emergencies both real and imagined have led people to betray their soundest traditions.

Weisberg explores the rise of flexibility, which he traces not only to the Enlightenment but further back to early Christian reinterpretation of Jewish sacred texts. He illustrates his argument with historical examples from Vichy France and the occupation of the British Channel Islands during World War II as well as post-9/11 betrayals of sound American traditions against torture, eavesdropping, unlimited detention, and drone killings.

Despite the damage wrought by Western society's incautious embrace of flexibility over the past two millennia, Weisberg does not make the case for unthinking rigidity. Rather, he argues that a willingness to embrace intransigence allows us to recognize that we have beliefs worth holding on to -- without compromise.

Recenzje

Richard Weisberg has written a wonderfully contrarian essay attacking the prevalent notion that compromise is a good in itself and instead defending the virtue of sticking to one's principles come what may. Whether or not one is wholly convinced by the well-written and often eloquent argument, with concrete examples vividly presented, it provides an excellent mental workout and thus aids in the clarification of one's own position.

O autorze

Richard H. Weisberg has written about France during the Holocaust and has also litigated successfully in American federal courts on behalf of Holocaust-era victims. He is a pioneer in the Law and Literature movement. He holds a chair in Constitutional Law at the Cardozo School of Law. For some time, these three pursuits have combined in him to provoke thinking about the risks of limitless flexibility, both in behavior and in mainstream thought.