Dictator literature
Subtitle: a history of despots through their writing
By: Daniel Kalder
Published: 2018
Language: eng
Number of pages: 379
ISBN-13: 9781786070586
Copyright date: 2018
Subjects: Psychology; Revolutionary literature; History and criticism; Dictators; Authorship; Kings' and rulers' writings; Dictators as authors; History
Description: "Throughout the twentieth century dictators subjected captive audiences to soul-killing prose on a massive scale. They published theoretical works, spiritual manifestos, poetry collections, memoirs and even romance novels. Armed with nothing but a darkly humorous wit, Daniel Kalder journeys long into the literary night to discover what their tomes reveal about the dictatorial soul. From the staggeringly vile and incompetent Mein Kampf, and the 'miracles' wrought by the former librarian Mao's Little Red Book, up to the ongoing exploits of North Korea's Kim dynasty, Dictator Literature is an unforgettable look at the power of the pen"--Inside dust jacket.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (pages 355-364) and index.
Table of contents: title: Lenin; title: Stalin; title: Mussolini; title: Hitler; title: Mao; title: Small demons; title: Catholic action; title: Disembraining machines; title: Eastern approaches; title: Dead letters; title: Another green world; title: Midnight in the garden of ultraboredom; title: Korth Korea : the metafictions of Kim Jong-il; title: Cuba : Castro's maximum verbiage; title: Iraq : the historical romances of Saddam Hussein; title: Post-Soviet : Comrade Zoroaster; title: Turkmenistan : post-everything; title: Death is not the end : conclusion.