The True Believer

With my recent departure from the frenzy of the upcoming football season, I have gone back to a passion of reading books. Most recently I was given a copy of "The True Believer" by Eric Hoffer which was written in the early 1950"s. In the Author's preface he says, "This book deals with some peculiarities common to all mass movements, social revolutions or nationalist movements. It does not maintain that all movements are identical, but they share certain essential characteristics which give them a family likeness".

The amazing part of this entire read is how it pertains to today as well as the history of our world. He goes on "There is in us a tendency to locate the shaping forces of our existence outside ourselves. Success and failure are unavoidably related in our minds with the state of things around us. Hence it is that people with a sense of fulfillment think it a good world and would like to conserve it as it is, while the frustrated favor radical change" This is truly amazing and spot on with today's social changes. Along with a breakdown of the Bolshevik revolution and Hitlers rise to power it addresses simple theories like "For men to plunge headlong into an undertaking of vast change, they must be intensely discontented yet not destitute, and they must have the feeling that by the possession of some potent doctrine, infallible leader or some new technique they have the access to a source of irresistible power".

I am entranced with this writing and highly recommend it to all. A simple analysis on the history of mass movements gives one the insight to today's society and to ourselves. "Men of thought seldom work well together, whereas between men of action there is usually an easy camaraderie. Teamwork is rare in intellectual or artistic undertakings, but common and almost indispensable among men of action."

A great read, The True Believer by Eric Hoffer. I highly recommend it!