Worth Dying For: The Power and Politics of Flags by Tim Marshall (PDF)

Description

When you see your nation’s flag fluttering in the breeze, what do you feel?For thousands of years flags have represented our hopes and dreams. We wave them. Burn them. March under their colours. And still, in the 21st century, we die for them. Flags fly at the UN, on the Arab street, from front porches in Texas. They represent the politics of high power as well as the politics of the mob.From the renewed sense of nationalism in China, to troubled identities in Europe and the USA, to the terrifying rise of Islamic State, the world is a confusing place right now and we need to understand the symbols, old and new, that people are rallying round.In nine chapters (covering the USA, UK, Europe, Middle East, Asia, Africa, Latin America, international flags and flags of terror), Tim Marshall draws on more than twenty-five years of global reporting experience to reveal the histories, the power and the politics of the symbols that unite us – and divide us.In his gripping new book The Future of Geography: How Power and Politics in Space Will Change Our World, Marshall digs deep into the past, present and future of the new ‘astropolitics’ that are set to change the face of life on Earth. Available to PRE-ORDER NOW in hardback, ebook and audio – out 27th April 2023

User’s Reviews

Reviews from Amazon users which were colected at the time this book was published on the website:

⭐I purchased this book to continue on with Tim Marshall’s series. I read Prisoners of Geography and absolutely loved it because it gave some relevant information about a few selected countries. He went a little deeper while covering a smaller % of countries. In this book, he took the opposite approach by spending a little time on a lot of flags including flags that do not represent countries. It was an interesting quick read and I’ll look forward to continuing the series soon!

⭐What a better round the world guided tour than reading Tim Marshall’s “A Flag Worth Dying For”. Colorful and rich in detail, Marshall gives us brief (and occasionally not so brief) histories of how flags came into being for many nations.Vexillology, or the study of flags, begins with our own Stars and Stripes. While, as an American, this chapter I know best, there were still facts presented that added to my knowledge. A particular treat in the first couple of chapters is the author’s sense of humor in his narration. As he moves through Europe through the Middle East and to Asia, Marshall’s humor lessens as the culture of war becomes more dramatic in assessing the development of flags in these areas. Geographically, we go south of the equator to visit Africa and South America. What strikes me most are the similarities of flags in certain regions…i.e. Scandanavia and Central America. Finally, Marshall ends up with a chapter called, “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly” which features the Jolly Roger, the Olympics and the Rainbow Flag.Nicely ordered in accompaniment to the story are all the flags that the author discusses. It’s a nice reference point to an unusual but important book. I highly recommend it.

⭐Very insightful book! Neat perspective on what the flag means to people and how the development of the flag correlates with states’ histories.

⭐A decent entry into a very sparse collection of books about flags. However, the effort seemed rushed and often times faulty or too little information was given.As an introduction to the study of flags it leaves too much unexplained or undefined for too long. As a serious book for those more ‘in the know’ about flags and vexillology (the study of flags) it doesn’t have quite enough new to add. When you add to that the generally casual tone and voice of the author, its hard to know who this book is for.Overall, however, it is nice to have a new book to add to the library of any serious fan of flags, but if you are well versed in world flag lore and categorization, this may not have anything to say to you.

⭐It’s an easy read. It combines well geopolitics, history, flags and the power that symbols play in our world. Offers a fresh perspective and different take about flags that many often overlook.

⭐Wow. Just finished this book and I am amazed that it was even published. There is a lot of inaccurate info here. I think one of the biggest mistakes was when he explained what the 3 colors of the Italian flag made us think of. Tomato, mozzarela and avocado!!! Yess avocado!!!!! Are you sure you are talking about the italian flag and not the mexican flag? Avocados are from Mexico. There is absolutely no Italian dish that includes avocado. The green should be basil or olives but not avocados. I don’t know what country this guy is from that has had avocado in their italian food. And actually even tomatoes are from Mexico and Central America. They were brought into Europe in the 1500s and only then did the Italians start using it in their dishes. The word tomato comes from the aztec word “tomatl”. Only truth in that phrase is the mozzarella. I think he needs to actually go to italy and see what real Italian food is like.

⭐This was a gift.

⭐Very good. It arrived earlier than advised.My only issue is that on your on-line booking, it does not clearly, or prominently, distinguish between a hard cover or paper cover copies of this book. As a result I purchased by accident the more expensive hard cover copy. Perhaps you you could make such options more prominent.Thanks, Ralph Bartlett

⭐A complete let down after the much better “Prisoners of Geography” by the same author. This outing however delves into the worst self-absorbing arrogance and ignorance that is prevalent in many corners of the US today. If you can stomach the author wildly describing his country as the “greatest nation on earth” and “best country that ever existed” without reaching for a bucket to spew into you will do well. Never was a book easier to put down!

⭐It’s ok. This book is nowhere near as interesting as Marshall’s previous book “Prisoners of Geography”. Some chapters are fairly insightful – for example the chapter about the flags in use in the United States, and how some groups have hijacked some flags. However, this chapter contains mind numbingly uninteresting dissections over inane details of some flags. This unfortunately happens in every chapter.The chapter about European flags is dull and disjointed. After an uninteresting look over some minor detail of some European flag, the next paragraph will clumsily move onto another country’s flag in what can only be described as the opposite of a segue. It also does not cover all European flags, just a seemingly random subset.This chapter also contains a few irritating careless statements, such as “the rise of Islam in Europe” and “mass migration in Europe”. Statements of this weight demand backing up with some basic numbers – something that Marshall neglects to do. The fact that they are not can be taken as a reflection of the paranoia that we see here in Europe.There are some interesting historical tidbits that can be taken away from the text – for example the British and the French involvement in the Arab world and it’s borders. It’s worth noting that Mauritania fails to be recognised as an arab state by Marshal, but Turkey is for some reason.On the whole, this book is ok but could be a lot more concise. It serves up some good nuggets of historical fact, but much of this is diluted by uninteresting discussions over small flag details. I was hoping it would be a look into the people that stand behind flags, and what they mean for them, but it wasn’t.

⭐So taken with Marshall’s ‘Prisoners of Geography’ work that I ordered this while still in full flow of the first. You may have thought Prisoners to be reasonably comprehensive and certainly it was eye opening, this great follow up read brought yet more little historic and anecdotal gems to our attention.Being sensitive or blunt depending on subject, Marshall has a refreshing tongue in cheek style that brightens up what could be dull yet informative moments. Much time has been given to research and seeking out those people who were involved in certain flags’ development.I was delighted to find a comprehensive section on South American countries, an area which is often hard to find within such texts and was certainly absent in Marshall’s Prisoners of Geography. Their fascinating history has been introduced to us here, with their flags.Yes, it could be said that much of this work could have been done during Marshall’s working life, but thankfully he did collate and present minutiae that is intriguing. It is in my view, among the better modern day anthropological works and as such, will be a valid read for a long time and will also give a good account of how we were at the time of its being written.There is a minor error with editing though. The central glossy pages show the flags mentioned in full glowing colour. It is compelling to follow these while reading the text. One flag’s country has been mis-named, which is unfortunate. But – this has been an editing error and should not interrupt your enjoyment of the body of work.

⭐After reading ‘Prisoners of Geography’ I was optimistic that anything by TM would be edifying, as indeed this is, but this book has put me off the whole idea of flags except for odd occasions when it’s necessary temporarily to identify a group or individual. Their appeal is unwholesome and, in a Christian context, seems idolatrous. I would have welcomed some investigation into the psychology behind the appeal of flags rather than such detailed history of their various colours and emblems. As he says, a fully comprehensive volume would need to be larger than this book allowed, but if he found space for the Red Cross, he could have found just a little space for the Esperanto flag which has a very interesting history and is, perhaps, one of the very few with no blood staining its folds.

⭐Like other reviewers, I was a big fan of the authors Prisoners of Geography, but I found this to be a poor follow up to the earlier book.Whilst there were moments of humour, and very occasional insight, this book went downhill fast and I couldn’t wait to finish it (but not in a good way). What I found was that new flags have constructed meanings, for example in what the colours mean whereas older flags were generally linked to saints. If I took one thing from this book it is that countries that that have a long and stable history have a stable flag.It is not though a book that I will rush to re-read, if at all

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