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The Woven Figure: Conservatism and America's Fabric
In a collection of essays, the author addresses such topics as inflation, the Gingrich revolution, and the arrogance of government and its inability to correct human nature
384 pages, Hardcover
First published November 1, 1997
About the author
George F. Will
56 books195 followersGeorge Frederick Will is an American newspaper columnist, journalist, and author. He is a Pulitzer Prize-winner best known for his conservative commentary on politics. By the mid 1980s the Wall Street Journal reported he was "perhaps the most powerful journalist in America," in a league with Walter Lippmann (1899–1975).
Will served as an editor for National Review from 1972 to 1978. He joined the Washington Post Writers Group in 1974, writing a syndicated biweekly column, which became widely circulated among newspapers across the country and continues today. His column is syndicated to 450 newspapers. In 1976 he became a contributing editor for Newsweek, writing a biweekly backpage column until 2011.
Will won a Pulitzer Prize for Commentary for "distinguished commentary on a variety of topics" in 1977.[6] Often combining factual reporting with conservative commentary, Will's columns are known for their erudite vocabulary, allusions to political philosophers, and frequent references to baseball.
Will has also written two bestselling books on the game of baseball, three books on political philosophy, and has published eleven compilations of his columns for the Washington Post and Newsweek and of various book reviews and lectures.
Will was also a news analyst for ABC since the early 1980s and was a founding member on the panel of ABC's This Week with David Brinkley in 1981, now titled This Week with George Stephanopoulos. Will was also a regular panelist on television's Agronsky & Company from 1977 through 1984 and on NBC's Meet the Press in the mid-to-late 1970s. He left ABC to join Fox News in early October 2013.
Will served as an editor for National Review from 1972 to 1978. He joined the Washington Post Writers Group in 1974, writing a syndicated biweekly column, which became widely circulated among newspapers across the country and continues today. His column is syndicated to 450 newspapers. In 1976 he became a contributing editor for Newsweek, writing a biweekly backpage column until 2011.
Will won a Pulitzer Prize for Commentary for "distinguished commentary on a variety of topics" in 1977.[6] Often combining factual reporting with conservative commentary, Will's columns are known for their erudite vocabulary, allusions to political philosophers, and frequent references to baseball.
Will has also written two bestselling books on the game of baseball, three books on political philosophy, and has published eleven compilations of his columns for the Washington Post and Newsweek and of various book reviews and lectures.
Will was also a news analyst for ABC since the early 1980s and was a founding member on the panel of ABC's This Week with David Brinkley in 1981, now titled This Week with George Stephanopoulos. Will was also a regular panelist on television's Agronsky & Company from 1977 through 1984 and on NBC's Meet the Press in the mid-to-late 1970s. He left ABC to join Fox News in early October 2013.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
May 17, 2017
Many readers will be familiar with George Will as sometime cable news talking head and long time columnist for the Washington Post. This book was published almost 20 years ago and I discovered it in a pile of books my wife was donating to the library. When I realized I had never read it, I decided to do so before consigning it to the 25 cent rack at the library.
The book is principally a collection of the columns Mr. Will wrote from late 1994 through early 1997 and, as such, gives a summary of intellectual conservatism in the mid-1990s. Spoiler Alert: The butler did not do it - Bill Clinton did. There are the familiar condemnations of the silly side of liberalism, examples of political correctness gone wild and the emotional fragility of the easily offended. If you are looking for ideological balance, you will not find it here. Mr. Will's targets are usually the cartoonish liberals of Anne Coulter's imagination, demanding that the government protect them from all offenses, real or imagined, the counterparts of the conservatives who liberals suspect always have a cross burning penciled in somewhere or other on their calendars.
Despite his political predispositions, or possibly because of them, Mr. Will is a talented and entertaining writer. As much as I would like to dismiss Mr. Will and his conservative ideas, it is obvious that he has spent more time considering the relationship of the government to its citizens than I have. There are many things that Mr. Will would like to see the federal government stop doing for its citizens, but one duty he recognizes for democratic governments in general is the inculcation and nurturing of civic virtue among the general population. Except for insuring their freedom to donate as much of their money as they wish to the candidates of their choice, he is short on specific ways of doing this, but I admit to a great deal of sympathy with the objective. Mr. Will is alarmed by the lack of unselfish devotion to the nation among its people and sees it continually decreases. I'm sure he would agree that the current president is a case in point. I don't know if Mr. Will would concede that the Trump presidency was forged in the flames of ultra-partisanship that he (Will) did his part in stoking, but being a particularly thoughtful person, I am sure he has considered it.
The book is principally a collection of the columns Mr. Will wrote from late 1994 through early 1997 and, as such, gives a summary of intellectual conservatism in the mid-1990s. Spoiler Alert: The butler did not do it - Bill Clinton did. There are the familiar condemnations of the silly side of liberalism, examples of political correctness gone wild and the emotional fragility of the easily offended. If you are looking for ideological balance, you will not find it here. Mr. Will's targets are usually the cartoonish liberals of Anne Coulter's imagination, demanding that the government protect them from all offenses, real or imagined, the counterparts of the conservatives who liberals suspect always have a cross burning penciled in somewhere or other on their calendars.
Despite his political predispositions, or possibly because of them, Mr. Will is a talented and entertaining writer. As much as I would like to dismiss Mr. Will and his conservative ideas, it is obvious that he has spent more time considering the relationship of the government to its citizens than I have. There are many things that Mr. Will would like to see the federal government stop doing for its citizens, but one duty he recognizes for democratic governments in general is the inculcation and nurturing of civic virtue among the general population. Except for insuring their freedom to donate as much of their money as they wish to the candidates of their choice, he is short on specific ways of doing this, but I admit to a great deal of sympathy with the objective. Mr. Will is alarmed by the lack of unselfish devotion to the nation among its people and sees it continually decreases. I'm sure he would agree that the current president is a case in point. I don't know if Mr. Will would concede that the Trump presidency was forged in the flames of ultra-partisanship that he (Will) did his part in stoking, but being a particularly thoughtful person, I am sure he has considered it.
October 31, 2021
George Will is a phenomenal writer - but the topics are 30 years old. While I remember them, many readers will not. The biographical and historical value is there, but what was likely a 5 Star read in 1997 is down to 3 today.
February 27, 2017
A little tricky awarding 5 stars to a collection of essays, but there are enough points of wisdom in this book to make it a must-read for anyone interested in conservatism and politics.
Will focuses often on the points of Hayek - that "the severest cost of solicitous government is not monetary but moral. This cost is measured in the diminution of personal responsibility and of private forms of social provision."
As an example of the federal govt. creating a program where one is not needed, 90 million people volunteer in this country, and AmeriCorps was trying to create 20,000 jobs.
Will focuses often on the points of Hayek - that "the severest cost of solicitous government is not monetary but moral. This cost is measured in the diminution of personal responsibility and of private forms of social provision."
As an example of the federal govt. creating a program where one is not needed, 90 million people volunteer in this country, and AmeriCorps was trying to create 20,000 jobs.
June 15, 2008
Good political analysis by an award-winning conservative author.
April 22, 2011
If you like George Will, here's a collection of his columns. Always well-reasoned and worth the read, this collection is very good, if not dated (archives from 1994-1997).
April 27, 2014
This was my first George Will book. I highly respect him for logical, common sense responses and including enough wit to keep you reading.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews