Governing Fables
Learning from Public Sector Narratives
A volume in the series: Research in Public Management. Editor(s): Lawrence R. Jones, Naval Postgraduate School.
Published 2011
Governing Fables: Learning from Public Sector Narratives advocates the importance of narrative for public servants, exemplifies it with a rigorously selected and analyzed set of narratives, and imparts narrative skills politicians and public servants need in their careers. Governing Fables turns to narratology, the inter-disciplinary study of narrative, for a conceptual framework that is applied to a set of narratives engaging life within public organizations, focusing on works produced during the last twenty-five years in the US and UK. The genres discussed include British government narratives inspired by and reacting to Yes Minister, British appeasement narratives, American political narratives, the Cuban Missile Crisis narrative, jury decision-making narratives, and heroic teacher narratives. In each genre lessons are presented regarding both effective management and essential narrative skills.
Governing Fables is intended for public management and political science scholars and practitioners interested in leadership and management, as well as readers drawn to the political subject matter and to the genre of political films, novels, and television series.
REVIEWS
"Professor Borins does our field [public sector] a service by applying this notion to the representations of organizational and personal events occurring in government, politics and public administration. In so doing he moves far beyond previous attempts to analyze how our field is portrayed in fiction, film and case studies." Charles T. Goodsell
"In sum, I found this a thoroughly worthwhile text – and one that should prove especially handy for teachers. It offers a useful overview of a hitherto largely neglected aspect of our field. It contains a lot of shrewd, well-informed - and enjoyable - interpretation of narratives with which many teachers and students will already be familiar. It deploys a handy conceptual framework for classifying its subject matter." Christopher Pollitt Katholieke Universiteit Leuven in International Review of Administrative Sciences
"Governing Fables challenges and illuminates, bringing a whole different set of perspectives to bear on analyzing and teaching public administration. While Borins’ reach is broad, it is important to understand the book’s essential focus is captured in sub-title “Learning from Public Sector Narratives”." Evert Lindquist School of Public Administration University of Victoria
"Borins has opened up new territory and introduced some key concepts that will find further use in our field. This volume will also add to the richness of our thinking about some of those stories that help us make sense of our experiences." Mike Rowe University of Liverpool
CONTENTS
Preface
Acknowledgements
1. Narrative as Object and Method of Study
2. Frontline Innovators: Transformational Teachers in America
3. The Ugly Business: British Narratives of Government
4. Churchill, Appeasement, Victory: The British Narrative of Leadership
5. Cynicism, Idealism, Compromise: American Political Fables
6. Kennedy, Cuba, History: Lessons of a Crisis Management Narrative
7. Matters of Life and Death: Two American Jury Narratives
8. Conclusion: A Story that is Just Beginning
References
About the Author
RELATED CATEGORIES
> BUSINESS & ECONOMICS: Management
> BUSINESS & ECONOMICS: Public Relations
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