The Icarus Syndrome : A History of American Hubris
Author(s): Peter Beinart
“Peter Beinart has written a vivid, empathetic, and convincing history of the men and ideas that have shaped the ambitions of American foreign policy during the last century—a story in which human fallibility and idealism flow together. The story continues, of course, and so his book is not only timely; it is indispensable.” — Steve Coll, author of Ghost Wars
Peter Beinart's provocative account of hubris in the American century describes Washington on the eve of three wars: World War I, Vietnam, and Iraq—three moments when American leaders decided they could remake the world in their image. Each time, leading intellectuals declared that the spread of democracy was inevitable. Each time, a president held the nation in the palm of his hand. And each time, a war conceived in arrogance brought tragedy.
But each catastrophe also imparted wisdom to a new generation of thinkers. These leaders learned to reconcile the American belief that anything is possible with the realities of a world that will never fully conform to this country's will—and in their struggles lie the seeds of American renewal today.
Review(s):
“A highly readable and useful hundred-year account of American ventures abroad that can serve as a path to understanding the past failures and uncovering why policy renewal is now proving so elusive. . . . Beinart usefully grapples with the practical impediments to making good policy.”
“Impressive. . . . Mr Beinart has produced an original and ambitious study.”
“The Icarus Syndrome is a readable survey of ‘America in the world’ over the past hundred years. Nothing is more chilling than Beinart’s catalog of the continuous, wrong-headed invocation of ‘Munich’ and ‘appeasement.’”
“A brilliant new book about the pendulum swings of U.S. foreign policy between excessive ambition and excessive retrenchment.”
“With this book Beinart vindicates his standing as one of the major thinkers of his generation on the United States’ world role.”
“Beinart possesses the analytical skills of a seasoned historian. . . . He’s a smart, reasoned political analyst who doesn’t resort to hyperbole and hysteria when making a point. . . The result is a book that’s generally enlightening.”
“Informative and engaging. . . . Beinart’s book tackles a great deal of material in an approachable, yet never simplistic, way. . . . The Icarus Syndrome is a valuable addition to the public debate about the United States’s ever evolving role in the world.”
“Why do we succomb to hubris? Peter Beinart has written a highly intelligent and wonderfully readable book that answers the question by looking at a century of American foreign policy. As with everything Beinart writes, it is lucid, thoughtful and strikingly honest.”
“Energetically researched and entertainingly written, Peter Beinart’s The Icarus Syndrome is both a fascinating intellectual history and an important coming-of-age parable about his generation’s hard-learned lesson in the limits of American power.”
“Peter Beinart has written a vivid, empathetic, and convincing history of the men and ideas that have shaped the ambitions of American foreign policy during the last century—a story in which human fallibility and idealism flow together. Beinart’s book is not only timely; it is indispensible.”
ISBN: 9780061456473