Dream or Nightmare by Stephen Duncombe

Dream or Nightmare by Stephen Duncombe

In an era of political theatre, reason alone won’t cut it.

Dream or Nightmare is a book of left wing strategy like no other: It proposes that, to compete with the right, progressives cannot depend on reason and hard fact. They must also deploy drama in the battle of ideas.

Donald Trump's presidency has shown how this is done, albeit to ends that are deplorable. Abandoning logic and truth, the Fabulist-in -hief conjures up spectacle to energize his base. Troops are dispatched to counter a fictional threat from convoys of helpless refugees. A powerful Supreme Court nominee is reduced to tears by accusations from a woman who has been sexually assaulted. Open fascists are described as "good people", physical attacks on journalists are lauded in front of cheering crowds.

If they are to engage with this Barnum-like politics, leftists must learn how to communicate in today's "vernacular of the spectacular", invoking symbol and emotion themselves, as well as truth. Matching the right in this fashion does not mean adopting its values. Rather Duncombe sets out what he calls a politics of "ethical spectacle".

Of extraordinary relevance to the dark carnival of contemporary politics, this new edition of the book sets out an electrifying new vision of progressive politics that is both persuasive and provocative.

Stephen Duncombe is a lifelong activist and co-founder of the Center for Artistic Activism. Teaching and writing on the intersection of culture and politics, he has published eight books, most notably Art and Activism: Your All-Purpose Guide to Make the Impossible Possible (with Steve Lambert), Dream or Nightmare: Reimagining Politics in an Age of Fantasy, and the Cultural Resistance Reader.