Introduction: authority, egalitarianism and leadership
Authority and legitimacy
Charisma and authority
Authority patterns in colonial New England
The American dream
Political clubs, parties, and radicalism
The strange career of political sociology in America
Liberalism and the democratic spirit
Talent, wealth and power
Success and leadership
Class and authority in the Oval Office
The Horatio Alger myth and the Supreme Court
Life and death of the Protestant establishment
Stress, crisis, and psycho-history
Hindrances to good citizenship
Legislating social and political mores
Pacifism and utopian thought
Authority versus conviction.