Both Ends of the Telescope
New Perspectives on FDR and American Entry into World War II
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 16530401 |
|---|---|
| Authors | J Garry Clifford (Indiana University, corresponding author) |
| Year | 1989 |
| Volume | 13 |
| Issue | 2 |
| Pages | 213-230 |
| Publication date | 1989-04-01 |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Diplomatic History (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0145-2096 • E-ISSN: 1467-7709 |
| Publisher | Oxford University Press (OUP) (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1111/j.1467-7709.1989.tb00052.x |
| OpenAlex | W2164852331 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 4 |
In a moment of inadvertent self-revelation, President Franklin D. Roosevelt once commented that he “had little sympathy with Copernicus” who “looked through the right end of the telescope, thus greatly magnifying his problems. I use the wrong end of the telescope and it makes things much easier to bear.”1 This whimsical statement evokes the irreverent self-confidence that Roosevelt brought to problems of statecraft while suggesting as well the occasional sleight of hand with which the White House conjurer juggled balls of diplomatic dynamite, whose explosive nature he did not always comprehend. The reference to telescopes also serves to remind historians that any evaluation of American foreign policy prior to Pearl Harbor depends to a large extent on the focus, or framework, that one adopts. Given FDR's dominant personality and a competitive management style that centralized decision making in the White House, scholars have inevitably searched for personal patterns and motives to explain the evolution of policy from peace to war. From James M. Burns's “fixer and preacher,” to Robert Divine's “game of giant steps,” to Robert Dallek's “kaleidoscope in which a shifting array of pressures moved him from one position to another,” the spotlight properly shines on Roosevelt.2 “Like a colossus, he bestrode American diplomacy for twelve tumultuous years. Sphinxlike, he continues to baffle each succeeding generation of historians,” writes Frederick W. Marks III in his recent effort at reevaluation (p. 1)
Art history · Diplomacy · Foreign policy · Political science · Politics · Sympathy · White (mutation · History · Intelligence, Security, War Strategy · Law · Military History and Strategy
| Citations per year | 0.12 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 1992 - 2011 (20) |
| Highly cited | No |