Heroic Failure and the British

Barczewski Stephanie

From the Charge of the Light Brigade to Scott of the Antarctic and beyond, it seems as if glorious disaster and valiant defeat have been essential aspects of the British national character for the past two centuries. In this fascinating book, historian Stephanie Barczewski argues that Britain's embrace of heroic failure initially helped to gloss over the moral ambiguities of imperial expansion. Later, it became a strategy for coming to terms with diminishment and loss. Filled with compelling, moving, and often humorous stories from history, Barczewski's survey offers a fresh way of thinking about the continuing legacy of empire in British culture today.

About the Author

Stephanie Barczewski is professor of history at Clemson University and the author of "Titanic: A Night Remembered", among other books. She lives in Greenville, SC.

Reviews

"The author has hit on a rich and fascinating subject... 'Heroic Failure' has some sharp truths to tell about Victorian Britain" – John Carey, Sunday Times

"This is a thoughtful, very original and well argued book that reassesses the many links that have existed between episodes of failure on the one hand, and imperial power, heroism and masculinity on the other" – Linda Colley, author of "Britons: Forging the Nation 1707-1837"

"This book deftly places a British tradition of 'heroic failure' not as the exemplar of modesty or stoicism, but as an alibi of empire. In Barczewski's capable hands, oft-told stories such as Stanley's encounter with Livingstone, the Charge of the Light Brigade, Captain Scott's death in the Antarctic, and the 'last stand' almost anywhere shine in a new light cast by imperial hubris. The result is a good read as edifying as it is entertaining" – Peter Mandler, author of "The English National Character: The History of an Idea from Edmund Burke to Tony Blair"

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