THE MORALISATION OF POWER

Press, Volume XCIV, Issue 28104, 20 October 1956, Page 3

THE MORALISATION OF POWER

Minos or Minotaur? The Dilemma of Political Power. By John Bowie. Jonathan Cape. 209 pp. Index.

John Bowie has hitherto published four volumes on political theory and the history of ideas. In this new book he examines the principal features of the modern scene in perspective as they appear to an historian. He is an acute observer and an original thinker and in a most provocative manner he draws attention to various urgent political and social problems of our time. His main thesis is that society today is on the horns of a dilemma. Since the invention of the atomic bomb, the day of supremacy by force of arms is finished, and war as a means of settling disputes has become impossible. The alternatives now open to the world are either the rule of law and impartial justice or rule by totalitarian methods and the brutality of unbridled power. The author critically examines various real dangers that today threaten freedom of the human spirit and civilisation generally. His critical eye ranges through the fields of thought in psychology, religion. ethics, science and politics, and in his analysis of modern thought he draws attention to alarming dangers. He relates all major questions to one central problem of politics, which he describes as “the moralization of power.” Basically the continuance of freedom and of civilisation, he concludes, depends upon the control of power through conscience. He affirms no dogma and offers no panacea, but in many quarters this book is likely to stir up a lively controversy. The author has tackled some very tough material, but his attack is vigorous and his presentation easy to understand. This book can be recommended to all who are interested in the fundamental problems of national and world government.