An analysis of the first half of François Hollande's five-year presidential term that examines the strengths and weaknesses of presidential politics following the Left's return to power in 2012 and puts forward an interpretation of the underlying nature of contemporary French politics, and the French Fifth Republic.

'Through a detailed analysis of the public performance of Hollande's first two and a half years as French President, Gaffney seizes the opportunity to explore the very peculiarly personalised dimension of the Fifth Republic presidency. He uses his depth of knowledge of France's political culture and history to offer the reader a highly original and stimulating reflection on the symbolic dimension of contemporary political leadership.' Florence Faucher, Professor of Political Science, Sciences Po, Centre d'études européennes, France

'Few observers understand the wellsprings of modern French political leadership as well as John Gaffney. When he brings his formidable analytical skills, honed over more than 30 years of study, to bear on the hapless François Hollande, the result is illuminating, devastating, and quite unlike anything else you will read on French politics today.' Andrew Knapp, Professor of French Politics and Contemporary History, University of Reading, UK

'The presidency of the Fifth Republic is one of the more distinctive of European political institutions and one of the least understood. Professor Gaffney is as good a guide as Virgil through the circles of this subject as well as providing a guide to the ramifications of French Presidentialism. This book is insightful and readable and both a thoughtful and valuable discussion but also something much rarer, a theoretical understanding of leadership.' David S. Bell, Emeritus Professor ofFrench Government and Politics, University of Leeds, UK

'Gaffney's book raises important questions about modern French political processes and, especially, the nature of presidential power' Tony Barber, Europe Editor, Financial Times

Autorentext

John Gaffney is Professor of Politics at Aston University, Birmingham, UK

Inhalt
Acknowledgements List of Abbreviations PART I: UNDERSTANDING THE FRENCH PRESIDENCY 1. Revealing the Republic 2. Scandals, Trivia, and 'Opinion' PART II: THE NORMAL PRESIDENT v. THE HYPER-PRESIDENT: SELF-DEFINITION AS ANTITHESIS 3. The New President 4. The Accidental Candidate 5. Presidential Character PART III: FROM THE GAULLIST SETTLEMENT TO CELEBRITY POLITICS 6. The Settlement 7. Path Dependence and the Evolution of the Fifth Republic 8. Personal Leadership and the Republic 9. Leadership, Institutions, and Culture 10. The Conditions and Characteristics of Fifth Republic Leadership 11. Character Traits PART IV: THE FIRST YEAR. THE NORMAL PRESIDENT AND TIME 12. International President Normal: The First Clues 13. 'Normalism' and Presidentialism 14. A Normal President's Constituency 15. Normal as Moral 16. Valériegate and the Presidency 17. Changing the Tempo; Scrambling the Signifiers 18. The Cahuzac Scandal 19. Gay Marriage and La France Profonde PART V: THE SECOND YEAR. PRESIDENTIAL CHARACTER UNDER SIEGE 20. France and Syria: Hollande v. Assad 21. Closergate 22. The Municipal Elections and the Valls Government 23. The European Elections and the Victory of the Front National 24. The Summer of 2014 25. The Right 26. Endgame? PART VI: CONCLUSION: CHARACTER AND PERFORMANCE IN FRENCH PRESIDENTIALISM 27. 'France' and 'the French' 28. Action, Fortune, and Politics as Saga 29. François Hollande and Presidential Character Traits 30. A Path-Dependent Tree of Traits 31. Celebrity and Privacy 32. The Self and Embodiment 33. The Normal, the Chivalric, and the Sixth Republic 34. Mitterrand and French Socialism 35. François Hollande, Time, and Performance 36. The International and the Domestic in Hollande's Presidency 37. The Presidency and Character Bibliography Index