Don't Think of an Elephant!

George Lakoff

Don’t Think of An Elephant! is the antidote to decades of conservative strategising and the right wing’s stranglehold on political dialogue in the United States and around the world. More specifically, it is the definitive handbook for understanding and communicating effectively about key social and political issues after the 2004 elections in Australia and the United States.

Conservatives now dominate politics because they understand the power of political metaphors as rhetorical framing devices: inherently positive terms like ‘family values’, ‘war on terror’, and ‘tax relief’ make it impossible to argue without sounding foolish, treacherous, or dangerously radical.

Author George Lakoff explains in detail exactly how the right has managed to co-opt traditional values in order to popularise its political agenda. He also provides examples of how the centre-left can address the community’s core values and reframe political debate to establish a civil discourse that reinforces progressive positions.

Lakoff’s years of research and work with environmental and political leaders have been distilled into this essential guide, which shows progressives how to think in terms of values instead of programs. Don’t Think of An Elephant! provides a compelling linguistic analysis of political campaigning. But, more importantly, it demonstrates that real political values and ideas must provide the foundation for political progress by the centre-left.