Eloise Buker

This book is a contribution to the contemporary debate about how Americans can take an active part in shaping their lives and communities. In it the authors show some possibilities for meaningful social action at a time when many Americans seem disillusioned about their prospects for influencing events and policies. The authors produce a work that reveals what it is like to think seriously in collaboration with others, inviting readers into the work as partners.

This book is a contribution to the contemporary debate about how Americans can take an active part in shaping their lives and communities. In it the authors show some possibilities for meaningful social action at a time when many Americans seem disillusioned about their prospects for influencing events and policies. The authors produce a work that reveals what it is like to think seriously in collaboration with others, inviting readers into the work as partners. Contents: INTRODUCTION: Taking Parts in a Conversation About Leadership. INGREDIENTS FOR LEADERSHIP. Leadership as Practical Wisdom: The Parable of Lincoln, Michael A. Leiserson; Rating the Presidents for Greatness: What Role Does Crisis Play?, Frank B. Costello, S.J.; Ignatius: Wisdom Through Discernment, Patrick B. O'Leary, S.J.; Perceval: From Naivete to Wisdom, Peter B. Ely, S.J. INGREDIENTS FOR PARTICIPATION. 'But Trusted Servants:' A Meditation on the A.A. Conception of Leadership, Thomas M. Jeannot; A Democratic Model of Leadership: Politics in an All Female Community, Eloise A. Buker; Italian/American Women Writers: Family Shapes Community, Mary Jo Bona; Learning To Lead, Jane A. Rinehart. INGREDIENTS FOR EMPOWERMENT. Making School Real: Leadership in the Classroom, Julie Tammivaara; Careful Mutuality: Leadership and Friendship in the Workplace, Rose Mary Volbrecht; We Need Not Be Ruled By Leaders: The Early Town Meetings, Robert Waterman; A Lesson for Citizens, Blaine Garvin.

Politics Through a Looking-Glass is a ground-breaking exploration of the connection between storytelling and politics. Author Eloise Buker examines how stories--both imaginative narratives and historical narratives--offer new ways of understanding social and political life. Basing her analysis on extensive field studies she conducted in two diverse political cultures--a rural working-class community in Hawaii and a suburban upper-middle class community in Ohio--Buker begins by developing a model for interpreting narratives which builds upon structural analysis and philosophical hermeneutics. She then applies her model to the interpretation of narratives from political leaders in the two different communities, arguing that stories are windows through which we gain insight into a community's experiences, values, struggles, and conflicts.