Scapegoat
A History of Blaming Other People
-
- €12.99
-
- €12.99
Publisher Description
A “brief and vital account” of humanity’s long history of playing the blame game, from Adam and Eve to modern politics—“a relevant and timely subject” (The Daily Telegraph).
We may have come a long way from the days when a goat was symbolically saddled with all the iniquities of the children of Israel and driven into the wilderness, but has our desperate need to absolve ourselves by pinning the blame on someone else really changed all that much?
Charlie Campbell highlights the plight of all those others who have found themselves in the wrong place at the wrong time, illustrating how God needs the Devil as Sherlock Holmes needs Professor Moriarty or James Bond needs “Goldfinger.”
Scapegoat is a tale of human foolishness that exposes the anger and irrationality of blame-mongering while reminding readers of their own capacity for it. From medieval witch burning to reality TV, this is a brilliantly relevant and timely social history that looks at the obsession, mania, persecution, and injustice of scapegoating.
“A wry, entertaining study of the history of blame . . . Trenchantly sardonic.” —Kirkus Reviews
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In this short compendium of scapegoating, Campbell wryly describes how we, as a species, are always looking to blame someone else for our misfortunes. "We still crave simple explanations for complex happenings," Campbell writes, but these explanations have often led to tragic situations in which innocents suffer for crimes they didn't commit. The term "scapegoat" first appeared in William Tyndale's 1530 English translation of the Latin Bible, describing the animals sacrificed as a "sin offering" on the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur. Tyndale, who was executed for his efforts to circumvent the clergy; Christ; witch hunts; the Holocaust; and the astonishing medieval practice of putting farm animals on trial for sorcery, all exemplify how scapegoats have been made to bear the sins of humanity. The book offers examples organized into thematic chapters (Jewish, Christian, sexual, Communist, medical), which cover ancient to modern times and show how powerful leaders and enemies of the people have always been "inextricably linked, reverse sides of a coin, one the shadow of the other." Although Campbell is a witty and engaging writer, the book never develops an argument beyond anecdote, and stops short of delving into why primal hate continues to have so much influence in shaping culture.
