Politics & Government

As far as topics go, politics may be as divisive as they come. Still, there's no escaping the role that it plays in our lives. The texts in this collection explore the gamut of how politics shapes and reshapes societies throughout history.

The Day of the Jackal

by Frederick Forsyth

Publication year 1971

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Conflict, Perseverance, Fear, Hate & Anger, Revenge, Masculinity, Death, Teamwork, Colonialism, Politics & Government, War, Loyalty & Betrayal, Truth & Lies

Tags Horror & Suspense, Mystery & Crime Fiction, Historical Fiction, Politics & Government

The Day of the Jackal is a 1971 thriller by Frederick Forsyth. The novel is centered around a professional assassin, known only as the Jackal, who is hired by a French paramilitary group to assassinate French President Charles de Gaulle. Forsyth’s realistic, research-based writing style builds suspense through a detailed account of the cat-and-mouse chase that spans across Europe, showcasing the complexities of security and espionage during a tumultuous political era. The novel has been... Read The Day of the Jackal Summary

The Death and Life of Great American Cities

by Jane Jacobs

Publication year 1961

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Community

Tags Sociology, Urban Development, World History, Arts & Culture, Politics & Government

The Death and Life of Great American Cities is a 1961 non-fiction book written by Jane Jacobs, an American-Canadian journalist, author, and activist with expertise in urban history and theory. This guide refers to the original edition published by the Vintage Books division of Random House. The title references the killing of cities by urban planners and to Jacobs’s ideas about the processes required to breathe new life into them. Jacobs’s overarching aim is to... Read The Death and Life of Great American Cities Summary

The Declaration of Independence

by Thomas Jefferson

Publication year 1776

Genre Essay / Speech, Nonfiction

Themes Politics & Government, Equality, Justice, Nation

Tags US History, Politics & Government, American Revolution, World History, Philosophy, Philosophy, Classic Fiction

The Declaration of Independence is one of the founding documents of the United States of America. The text was written primarily by Thomas Jefferson in June of 1776 after the Second Continental Congress appointed him the chair of the Committee of Five (the others were John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Robert Livingston, and Roger Sherman), a group designated to draft a statement declaring the American colonies independent from Great Britain. Jefferson based his draft on existing... Read The Declaration of Independence Summary

The Devil's Highway

by Luis Alberto Urrea

Publication year 2004

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Tags Sociology, US History, Race & Racism, Immigration & Refugeeism, Creative Nonfiction, Mystery & Crime Fiction, Journalism, World History, Social Justice, Politics & Government

Luis Alberto Urrea’s book, The Devil’s Highway, tells the story of a disastrous border crossing between Mexico and The United States. The Devil’s Highway refers to a particularly brutal stretch of desert. In the past, it was not used as often as other routes, but as the story shows, the development and proliferation of the Border Patrol has made it necessary to use this dangerous route. The story is divided into four sections: “Cutting the... Read The Devil's Highway Summary

The Dispossessed

by Ursula K. Le Guin

Publication year 1974

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Nation

Tags Science Fiction, Fantasy, Philosophy, Philosophy, Classic Fiction, Politics & Government

The Dispossessed tells the story of its protagonist Shevek’s journey from his home on a desolate, isolated moon to the abundant planet around which his society revolves. Shevek is an Odinian physicist from the planet of Urras, a socialist planet without a central government that follows the teachings of the revolutionary Odo. Upon settling Urras, Odinians refused contact with their former home, the planet Anarres: the only exchange between the planets occurs as mined goods... Read The Dispossessed Summary

The Division of Labor in Society

by Émile Durkheim

Publication year 1893

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Economics, Community, Justice

Tags Sociology, Philosophy, Business & Economics, Education, Education, Anthropology, Anthropology, Social Science, Philosophy, Classic Fiction, Politics & Government

The Division of Labor in Society by Émile Durkheim is a doctoral dissertation first published in 1893. It is most notable for using the scientific method to explain social phenomena, and it is widely considered one of the foundational works in modern sociology. Durkheim, along with other theorists such as Max Weber and Karl Marx, is considered a founder of the field. In The Division of Labor in Society, Durkheim explores how modern societies remain... Read The Division of Labor in Society Summary

The End of History and the Last Man

by Francis Fukuyama

Publication year 1992

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Equality, Politics & Government

Tags Politics & Government, Philosophy, Business & Economics, World History, European History, Sociology, Philosophy

The End of History and the Last Man by political scientist Francis Fukuyama is a widely read and controversial book on political philosophy published in 1992. In it, Fukuyama argues that the end of the Cold War in 1991 established Western liberal democracy as the final and most successful form of government, thus marking the conclusion of “mankind’s ideological evolution.” Since its original release, the book has been updated in 2006 and 2019 with reassertions... Read The End of History and the Last Man Summary

The End of Poverty

by Jeffrey Sachs

Publication year 2005

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Race, Justice, Community

Tags Race & Racism, Social Science, Business & Economics, World History, Sociology, Social Justice, Poverty, Politics & Government

In The End of Poverty: Economic Possibilities for Our Time (2005), leading economist Jeffrey D. Sachs draws on his extensive global experience to identify a path to end extreme poverty within 20 years. This work is inspired by, and in some ways modeled after, the classic John Maynard Keynes essay Economic Possibilities for Our Grandchildren (1930). In the depths of the Great Depression, Keynes outlined a pathway to ending poverty in the industrialized countries near... Read The End of Poverty Summary