Book Reviews : Leadership, by James MacGregor Burns. Harper & Row. £6.95
| Published date | 01 October 1979 |
| Date | 01 October 1979 |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1177/004711787900600419 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
723
Government
had
ether
not
read,
or
had
discounted
as
a
declaration
of
policy,
’Mein
Kampf’.
Otherwise
they
could
have
saved
themselves
much
illusory
hope
and
pointless
manoeuvring
unless,
of
couse,
as
on
the
German
side,
the
main
objective
was
to
gain
time
for
rearmament
which,
incidentally,
we
largely
failed
to
achieve.
The
view
which
seems
to
have
prevailed
was
that
Germany’s
economic
embarassments
might
facilitate
a
broad
political
settlement
though
concessions
made
to
obtain
it
must
be
adequately
balanced
on
both
sides.
There
are
two
fascinating
appendices,
in
the
shape
of
reports
from
Sir
Robert
Vansittart
of
his
visit
to
Germany
in
August
1936.
They
should
give
current
politicians
dealing
with
the
’unforeseeable’
much
food
for
thought.
Satow’s
Guide
to
Diplomatic
Practice,
5th
edition,
Edited
by
Lord
Gore-
Booth.
Longman
£14.95.
This
is
the
fifth
edition
of
a
book
which
has
become
a
classic
on
the
diplomatic
conduct
of
international
affairs.
Since
its
first
appearance
in
1917,
and
more
rapidly
during
the
last
twenty
years,
the
ambience
of
diplomacy
has
changed
drastically,
and
as
a
result
its
modern
practice
has
had
to
adapt
the
role
played
to
meet
the
changed
circumstances.
Many
new
small
and
yet
smaller
countries
have
appeared,
international
organ-
isations
with
widely
differing
functions
have
multiplied,
commercial
and
economic
factors
have
become
more
and
more
an
integral
part
of
the
work
of
thc
Ambassador
and
his
staff
while,
in
addition,
modern
methods
of
communication
have
reduced
the
scope
for
individual
initiative
on
the
part
of
the
man
on
the
spot.
To
add
to
the
difficulties
and
dangers
of
the
task
is
the
proliferating
growth
of
terrorism
and
violence
which
now
in
Iran,
as
earlier
elsewhere,
has
led
to
the
breach
of
the
oldest
of
all
acknowledged
customs
as
between
sovereign
states,
that
of
diplomatic
immunity.
This
area
is
examined
in
some
detail
in
Chapters
23
and
24.
In
dealing
expertly
with
these
developments,
Lord
Gore
Booth
has
happily
maintained
the
special
flavour
of
the
work
which
makes
it
unique
while
drastically
revising
and
amending
the
earlier
versions
where
necessary.
The
volume
is
divided
into
five
Books
covering:
I.
Diplomacy
in
general;
II.
Diplomatic
agents
in
general;
III.
Consular
matters;
IV.
Inter-
national
transactions;
and
V.
International
organisations
with
five
appen-
dices
dealing
with
their
work,
membership
and
terminology.
It
is
needless
to
stress
that
it
is
essential
reading
for
all
those
working
in
the
field
or
studying
any
aspect
of
ever-increasingly
complex
international
relations.
Leadership,
by
James
MacGregor
Burns.
Harper
&
Row.
£6.95.
This
all-embracing
study
of
leadership,
combining,
as
one
reviewer
puts
it,
&dquo;what
are
usually
divergent
and
competitive
approaches
in
the
social
sciences;
biographical,
historical,
institutional,
psychological
and
behavioural&dquo;
is
extremely
stimulating,
even
if,
in
some
instances,
it
stimu-
lates
one
to
disagree
rather
than
agree.
His
main
theme,
lavishly
illustrated
by
examples
drawn from
all
continents
and
all
documented
historical
periods,
is
that
leadership
far
from
being
the
exercise
of
brute
power-
wielding
or
power-manipulation
is
&dquo;a
dynamic
reciprocity
between
ordinary
people
or
&dquo;followers&dquo;
and
political
and
ideological
&dquo;leaders&dquo;
that
thrives
on
conflict
and
demands
no
consensus&dquo;.
He
believes
neither
in
an
elitist
theory
as
embodying
a
theory
of
imposition
of
values,
nor
an
anti-
elitist
attitude,
which
rejects
leadership
on
untenable
grounds.
As
he
con-
cludes
&dquo;Woodrow
Wilson
called
for
leaders
who
by
boldly .
interpreting
ihe
nation’s
conscience
could
lift
people
out
of
their
every-day
selves.
That
people
can
be
lifted
iiato
their
better
selves
is
the
secret
of
trans-
forming
leadership
and
the
moral
and
practical
theme
of
this
book.&dquo;
It
is
an
inspiring
theme,
but
such
a
result
has
only
been
achieved,
as
far
as
one
can
see,
in
our
present
century
under
the
threat
or
reality
of
war.
In
any
case
it
is
a
very
enthralling
exposition
of
the
author’s
deeply
held
convictions.
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