A greedy bully seizes his moment to make a grab for power. Bootlicking kiss-ups swarm around him. Mobs of partisans are seduced by lies, propaganda, and virulent ideology. Plagues and violence breakout. People die and the nation falters. This is a common, recurring tragedy: tyrants rise to power, sycophants suck up, the moronic masses cheer it on, against their interests. And things fall apart. This is a tale of the contemporary political landscape of the USA, but it is also a story as old as the Ancient Greeks. Plato and Sophocles described this trio of political characters; they warned that tragedy unfolds in the absence of reason, and proposed wisdom and virtue as the cure. This account was well-known to the Founders of the United States, who imagined the U.S. Constitution as a solution to tyranny. The dream of Enlightenment required educated citizens and leaders informed by philosophy, theology, and history. The Trump era prompts us to think about perennial themes in politics, philosophy and morality. The bad news is that there have always been morons, sycophants, and tyrants. The good news is that once we know this, we can prepare a response. At times, each of us can be tyrannical, moronic, and sycophantic. That is why we need reason and virtue, as well as a political system that restrains our worst inclinations. This book brings historical insight to bear on current affairs, the arc of the Trump phenomenon, and uses the contemporary moment to illuminate universal themes of human society.
Andrew Fiala is professor of philosophy and director of the Center for Ethics at California State University, Fresno. Fiala has a Ph.D. in Philosophy from Vanderbilt University. He is a respected scholar of ethics, political philosophy, and the philosophy of religion, and particularly a prominent thinker of non-violence and pacifism. He has written of a number of books, including a widely used ethics textbook: Ethics: Theory and Contemporary Issues, 9th edition (co-authored with Barbara MacKinnon).
Preface Part 1: Historical, Political, and Theological Contexts Chapter 1: From Trump to Plato and Back Again Trump: 2021 Plato: 375 BCE Trump: 2016 Conclusion: Tragic Love and the Problem of Polarization Chapter 2: Tyranny as a Theological Problem Modest Humanism Is God a Tyrant? Paganism and Trumpism Inspirational Moral Leaders The Trump Difference Conclusion: God is not a Tyrant Chapter 3: The Tragic Trio and the Midwife Who Enlightens Tyranny is in the Eye of the Beholder Our Fundamental Brokenness Tyranny Trumps Truth Tyranny Over the Mind Trump is a Symptom Conclusion: The Midwife who Opens Our Eyes Chapter 4: Political Tragedy and Historical Wisdom Philosophical History The Problem of Living Within History The Common Story of Toil and Trouble Tyrants Everywhere Conclusion: Wisdom, Virtue, and Democratic Education Part 2: The Tragic Trio Chapter 5: The Tyrant's Pride: On Ambition, Power, and Greatness Fashionable Tyranny Defining Tyranny A Tyrannical Soul does not a Tyrant Make Exorbitant Power Revolutions and Transitions Hubris Greatness is not Goodness Conclusion: The Goodness of Goodness Chapter 6: The Fool's Stupidity: On Willful and Vicious Ignorance Violence is Fun Who Are You Calling a Moron? Infantilization and Accountability Defining Foolishness Ignorance and The Big Lie Conclusion: Fools Want to Believe Fake News Chapter 7: The Sycophant's Complicity: On Cunning, Flattery, and the Trojan Horse Defining Sycophancy Sycophants and Flatterers from Socrates to Seneca Opportunism, Contortionism, and Political Performance Art Complicity and Structures of Power Flattering the Tyrant and the Mob Conclusion: The Trojan Horse Part 3: Remedies and Solutions Chapter 8: Wisdom, Vigilance, and The Citizen-Philosopher A Few Good Men Conflicting Patriotisms Nobody's Free Until Everybody's Free Philo-politics and Philosophical Friendship Vigilance, Resistance, and Complicity Civic and Moral Education Conclusion: Vigilance and Accountability in an Un-Thinking Culture Chapter 9: The Constitution of Wisdom Montesquieu, Madison, and Mike Pence The Evolving Constitution The Tragic Truth of Political Philosophy Republicanism Triumphs Against Trump Hitler, Mussolini, and Real Tyranny The Wise Dysfunction of Mixed Government The Near Fatal Flaw of Slavery A Tragic Conclusion Chapter 10: The Mirror of Philosophy Appendices Appendix 1: Trump's View of Morality in Context Appendix 2: Cast of Characters and Key Events
Avoiding histrionics, Professor Fiala presents Donald Trump as a mere exemplar of an ancient and universal problem, through three archetypal characters: the tyrant, the sycophant and the fool
