Political Animal

The late Gore Vidal occupied a unique position within American letters. Born into a political family, he ran for office several times, but was consistently critical of his nations political system and its leaders. A prolific writer in several genres, he was also widely known -- particularly in the United States -- on the basis of his frequent appearances in the various electronic media. In this ground-breaking work, Heather Neilson examines the centrality of the theme of power throughout his writings. Political Animal: Gore Vidal on Power focuses primarily, although not exclusively, on Vidal's historical fiction. In his novels depicting American history and those set in the ancient world, Vidal evokes a world in which deliberately propagated falsehood disinformation can become established as truth. Neilson engages with Vidal's representations of political and religious leaders, and with his deeply ambivalent fascination with the increasingly inescapable influence of the media. She asserts that Vidal's oeuvre has a Shakespearean resonance in its persistent obsession with the question of what constitutes legitimate power and authority.