The true believer eric hoffer paperback harpercollins publishers. In my last post, i discussed eric hoffers 1951 classic. The first lines of hoffers book clearly state its purpose. Babinski the christian philosopher, victor reppert recently asked at his blog, do christian apologists and atheists agree on something important that much of the world denies. The rapid spread of christianity in the roman world was partly due to the fact that the. There is a lot to be said here, but ill just mention a few similarities. The true believer is one of the most provocative books of our immediate day. True believers continue their fight to make america a. Naturally, the question arises as to the similarities between trump supporters in the usa and hoffers true believers. Journal by presidential medal of freedom recipient eric hoffer, the true believer is a landmark in.
Feb 25, 2020 even though most people never heard of eric hoffer, he was the guru on the cults of true believers who gained fame in the 1950s for observations on the rise of communism and fascism in europe. Thoughts on the nature of mass movements by eric hoffer is a political philosophy classic from 1951. A selfeducated man, eric hoffer was most likely born in 1898. My copy is small soft cover book with 192 pages and a yellow and red cover. Aphoristic in style his later books would be even more in this vein, some having only a single sentence on a page, it was based upon years of reflection, and his own observations of the rise of. Reporting on the true believer, air hoffer examines with machiavellian detachment mass movements, from christianity in its infancy to the national uprisings of our own day. Download for offline reading, highlight, bookmark or take notes while you read the true believer. Eric hoffer and the creation of fanatical mass movements. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. Many who join a rising revolutionary movement are attracted by the prospect of sudden and spectacular change in their conditions of life. His prose style is at once aphoristic and thoughtful. A revolutionary movement is a conspicuous instrument of change.
Eric hoffer, the true believer the true believer, hoffer tells us, is a frustrated, selfloathing individual who compensates for a weak identity by finding some crusade to invest himself in. His basic premise is that there are traits common to all mass movements, whether they are religious, social, or nationalist in nature. Christian science monitor the famous bestseller with concise insight into what drives the mind of the fanatic and the dynamics of a mass movement wall st. T he american philosopher eric hoffer 19021983 is a rare thinker. Thoughts on the nature of mass movements ebook written by eric hoffer. Though he never attended college and led by his own unverified accounts a very eclectic life, all that. Thoughts on the nature of mass movements is a 1951 social psychology book by american writer eric hoffer, in which the author discusses the psychological causes of fanaticism. 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.
Completely relevant and essential for understanding the world today, the true believer is a visionary, highly provocative look into the mind of the fanatic and a. Hoffer wrote the book in 1951, when two of the most malignant mass movements in human history, those that produced the soviet union and nazi germany, sprung up, and the. Eric hoffer, a selfmade man, a longshoremanphilosopher, has been chosen by president johnson to serve on a committee studying violence in the united states. Time to consider hoffers wisdom on true believers news. Published in 1951, it depicts a variety of arguments in terms of applied world history and social psychology to explain why mass movements arise to challenge to status quo, hoffer discussing the sense of individual identity and the holding to particular ideals that can. From christianity to national socialism, eric hoffer shows how all mass movements are similar. Read today, however, this book is mediocre, at best.
Tea party as mass movements in eric hoffers the true. Christian science monitor the famous bestseller with concise insight into what drives the mind of the fanatic. It might be interesting to compare and contrast hoffer s psychological insights into what drives people to become true believers with say, c. Eric hoffer was a san francisco longshoreman who selfeducated and left behind the true believer, an astonishingly insightful examination of the phenomenon of mass movements. A rising religious movement is all change and ex perimentopen to new views and techniques from all quarters. The true believer is the book that eisenhower gave all his friends. This endorsement made hoffer, a selfeducated san francisco stevedore, famous. The true believer and the nature of mass movements. Aug 04, 2018 the book continues with a focus on hoffer s analysis of the means used to motivate true believers and bind them together. No matter if it is religious movements, nationalist movements, or social revolutions, each person in a mass movement seem to follow a certain mold. He concludes his analysis with a discussion of the energumen of those who join both good and bad mass movements.
It exemplifies the powers of creative thinking and critical. Thoughts on the nature of mass movements by eric hoffer, the socalled selfeducated stevedorephilosopher. This could easily be seen as hoffer s starting point. If you dig a little deeper if you drive past the easy answers of a hardworking middle class vs. Hoffer began writing the true believer in the 1940s, as nazism and fascism spread across europe. He was the original hyphenated american, and his book is the tobins spirit guide to progressivism. In 1951, the philosopher eric hoffer wrote his book the true believer to.
Thoughts on the nature of mass movements is a 1951 social psychology book by. The true believer book snoisle libraries bibliocommons. Thoughts on the nature of mass movements, harper perennial modern classics 2010. Excerpts from eric hoffer s the true believer with annotations regarding the fitness aerobics movement ken hutchins, superslow exercise guild essay. Thoughts on the nature of mass movements was published in 1951.
He was the author of ten books and was awarded the presidential medal of freedom in february 1983. The true believer download ebook pdf, epub, tuebl, mobi. The true believer eric hoffer is a student of extraordinary perception and insight. The true believer became widely read after thenpresident dwight eisenhower recommended it as an essential book. The famous bestseller with concise insight into what drives the mind of the fanatic and the dynamics of a mass movement wall st. The author uses examples of movements of all types from the past, as well as movements that were current when the book was written. Eric hoffer s book the true believer is the great examination of the subject. As examples, the book often refers to communism, fascism, national socialism, christianity, protestantism, and islam. The far left and the far right can be indistinguishable from each.
Students of business must be students of human behavior, including mass behavior. One complaint i have is how hoffer creates i dont know where to start, the book interweaves so many disciplines, history, politics, psychology, sociology, and religion. Author of ten books, his big break came in when he penned the true believer which amassed recognition and acknowledgement from the critics and audience alike. Youd be welladvised to read eric hoffers the true believer in full before you do anything, but. The bible, the quran, liberty, freedom, communism, equality, lebensraum, the state, the nationallencompassing narratives which would become the central dogma.
Thoughts on the nature of mass movements was written by eric hoffer, first published in 1951 and became a bestseller. Nevertheless, they committed suicide for their cause. Anyone wanting to understand this horrible irony would do well to read eric hoffer s 1951 classic, the true believer. Thoughts on the nature of mass movements 1951 due to an accident, author eric hoffer lost his eyesight at age 7, but it returned inexplicably at age 15. Completely relevant and essential for understanding the world today. His first book, the true believer, published in 1951, was widely recognized as a classic, receiving critical acclaim from both scholars and laymen, although hoffer believed that his book the ordeal of change was his finest work. Thoughts on the nature of mass movements the true believer became a hit because it was released on the heels of world war ii and at the outset of the ussoviet cold war, and hoped to explain the nature of the. Summary of eric hoffers, the true believer reason and meaning. Thoughts on the nature of mass movements by eric hoffer 2010, paperback at the best online prices at ebay. May 10, 2011 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. In 2001, the eric hoffer award was established in his honor with permission granted by the eric hoffer estate in 2005.
Thoughts on the nature of mass movements is a 1951 social psychology book by american writer eric hoffer that discusses the psychological causes of fanaticism the book analyzes and attempts to explain the motives of the various types of personalities that give rise to mass movements. Hoffer was to write several books throughout his career, but it was first book, the true believer which, published in 1951, made his name and fame. His analysis of the psychology of mass movements is a brilliant and frightening study of the mind of the fanatic, the individual whose, personal failings lead him to join a. Eric hoffer 19021983 was a selfeducated us author and philosopher who was a migratory worker and longshoreman until 1967. No doubt this book, written just prior to the outbreak of the korean war, served as one of his qualifications. Thoughts on the nature of mass movements is one of the most widely read works of social psychology written in the 20thcentury. The true believer the first and most famous of his books was made into a bestseller when. Some see the world as essentially progressive, that over time we grow more advanced technologically, more confident in our abilities to control our destinies, more sure. Eric hoffer is a student of extraordinary perception and insight. The reason hoffer titles the book true believer is that a strong mass movement only works when it purports to provide a solution that can be turned to for all the essential answers. Eric hoffers the true believer and trump reason and meaning. And eric hoffer was a true gangsta he was blind as a kid, homeless most his life, and tried killing himself at 30, so makes the book that much cooler.
The range of his reading and research is vast, amazing. Thoughts on the nature of mass movements is a nonfiction book authored by american philosopher eric hoffer. Hoffer and the true believers the russell kirk center. Ive been reading eric hoffers eric hoffer 1951 book the true believer. It points out that mass movements grow out of frustration and boredom a man is likely to mind his own business when it is worth minding. In 1951, the american philosopher eric hoffer attempted to answer this, and published his first and most wellknown work. This book deals with some peculiarities common to all mass movements, be they religious. In 1951 eric hoffer authored a book, the true believer, that analyzed and explained the psychological causes of fanaticism, the motives of personalities that give rise to extremist movements. Hatred is the most accessible and comprehensive of all the unifying agents mass movements can rise and spread without belief in a god, but never without a belief in a devil. The book is a critique of ideological fanaticism, tracing it to its psychological roots.
The conservatism of a religionits orthodoxyis the inert coagulum of a once highly reactive sap. This book presents ideas about how mass movements work and the psychology of people that awakenjoin mass movements. Not knowing if he would lose his eyesight again, he read voraciously for the rest of his life. It is the type of book that congratulates the reader while pretending to challenge him. The true believer thoughts on the nature of mass movements book. His first book, the true believer, published in 1951, was widely recognized as a classic, receiving critical acclaim from both scholars and laymen the true believer. Thoughts on the nature of mass movements hoffer looks at various mass movements, religious and secular, good and bad, from. A moral and social philosopher, eric hoffer was a sheer genius who is today regarded as one of the most important thinkers of the 20 th century. In this book, eric hoffer explores the nature of mass movements. In walden henry david thoreau wrote, the mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation. Get unlimited book summaries with a growthplus account. It is perhaps the most unremarkable and selfevident truth of life. Allen scarbrough chose the true believer as one of 25 books that you need to read to know just about everything. In my last post, i discussed eric hoffer s 1951 classic.
The true believers faith in their holy cause is to a considerable extent a subsitute for their lost faith in themselves. Combining the life of a working man with a life of reading and writing, the san francisco longshoreman eric hoffer became a noted philosopher, a bestselling author, and an acute observer of american life. Speaking of being drawn into mass movements of the religious or political nature, below are some quotations from eric hoffer s little classic, the true believer. He wrote in his spare time after doing shifts on the san francisco docks, where he continued to work, even after becoming a successful author. Eric hoffer july 25, 1902 may 21, 1983 was an american moral and social philosopher. Thoughts on the nature of mass movements by eric hoffer. The true believer thoughts on the nature of mass movements eric hoffer we live in a world of change.
The true believer project gutenberg selfpublishing. The first and bestknown of hoffers books, the true believer has been published in 23 editions between 1951 and 2002. The true believer summary and quotes by eric hoffer. The true believer is a challenging book to read, but an important one. The true believer revisited issue 34 philosophy now. The true believerthe first and most famous of his bookswas made into a bestseller when president eisenhower cited it during one of the earliest television press conferences. According to hoffer, the early converts to any mass movement come from the ranks of the frustrated, that is, people whofeel that their lives are spoiled or wasted. Thoughts on the nature of mass movements is a 1951 work in the field of social psychology by american moral and social philosopher eric hoffer. His papers in the hoover archives run to many thousands of pages and include journals that have never been published. There are many shapes and sizes of people that follow a mass movement, but according to eric hoffer in his book the true believer, all the people have some peculiarities in common with one another.
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