Cover you are not human

In Nazi Germany, Hitler portrayed the Jews as vermin and six million people were killed. Metaphors can make the unreasonable seem reasonable, the illegitimate appear legitimate, and good people turn evil.

Top speechwriter Simon Lancaster goes on a mission to explore how metaphors are used and abused today. From Washington to Westminster, Silicon Valley to Syria, Glastonbury to Grenfell, he discovers the same images being used repeatedly. Scum! Bitch! Vegetable! Whilst vulnerable groups are dehumanised, the powerful are hailed as stars, angels or even gods.

Prepare to take a journey into the surreal. This book raises profound questions about the power of language and the language of power. You will never think about words in the same way again.


Reviews

"A fascinating study of the effect of metaphor. […] This is an eye-opening, powerful read, as edifying as it is frightening."

The Big Issue

“A timely and pressing reminder why politicians should think before they sound bite…"

Baroness Warsi

“This book is chock full of the things we’ve come to expect from Simon Lancaster: insight, passion and a phenomenal talent for self-expression. The power of metaphor has never been so effectively explored or explained."

Alan Johnson

“A great rollicking read, full of eye-popping stories you’ve never heard, but which also manages to weave stats and scholarship into a vivid, complete tapestry. Everyone who needs to weigh their words should read it; and anyone who wants to avoid being unwittingly co-opted by the sales talk of politics, Big Tech and snake oil salesmen needs a copy to hand."

Trevor Phillips

"A powerful and timely reminder of our shared humanity."

LA Review of Books

"I was gripped reading it and read it cover to cover to the exclusion of all else. Powerful, compelling and very insightful."

Professor Helen Stokes Lampard, Chair of the Royal College of General Practitioners
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  • eBook
  • ISBN: 9781785904080
  • 11 September 2018
  • £9.99

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