How to Be a Dictator: The Cult of Personality in the Twentieth Century (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9781639730681)

From the Samuel Johnson Prize-winning author of China After Mao, a sweeping and timely study of twentieth-century dictators and the development of the modern cult of personality.

No dictator can rule through fear and violence alone. Naked power can be grabbed and held temporarily, but it never suffices in the long term. In the twentieth century, as new technologies allowed leaders to place their image and voice directly into their citizens' homes, a new phenomenon appeared where dictators exploited the cult of personality to achieve the illusion of popular approval without ever having to resort to elections.

In How to Be a Dictator, Frank Dikter examines the cults and propaganda surrounding twentieth-century dictators, from Hitler and Stalin to Mao Zedong and Kim Il Sung. These men were the founders of modern dictatorships, and they learned from each other and from history to build their regimes and maintain their public images. Their dictatorships, in turn, have influenced leaders in the twenty-first century, including Vladimir Putin, Viktor Orb疣, and Xi Jinping.

Using a breadth of archival research and his characteristic in-depth analysis, Dikter offers a stunning portrait of dictatorship, a guide to the cult of personality, and a map for exposing the lies dictators tell to build and maintain their regimes.

Author: Frank Dikter
ISBN-10: 1639730680
ISBN-13: 9781639730681
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Language: English
Published: 11/15/2022
Pages: 304
Format: Paperback
Weight: 0.75lbs
Size: 8.20h x 5.45w x 0.90d