Political memoirs have value

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This article was published 29/01/2022 (1370 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

POLITICAL memoirs are a distinctive, undervalued genre of writing covering the lives of politicians and the dynamics of the political process. This thought was prompted by my recent read of former Progressive Conservative premier Gary Filmon’s memoir Yes We Did: Leading in Turbulent Times, which I found to be an informative and readable account of his life and public service.

This is not, however, a review of the Filmon book. Rather, based on five decades of studying and writing about Canadian politics, I will offer some thoughts on what political memoirs can contribute to our understanding of why individuals enter political life, what their accounts of events reveal about politics and governing, and what those accounts tell us about how they see themselves and want to be remembered.

There are several forms of personal political writing. The rarest is the political diary, in which a politician regularly records observations on events as they occur. William Lyon Mackenzie King kept a diary during all three terms as prime minister (1921–26, 1926–30 and 1935–48), resulting in more than 50,000 pages, which were excerpted in two books and have been available in a digital format since 2002 at Library and Archives Canada.

Most of the publicity related to King’s diary focused on his ongoing engagement with spiritualism. However, the diaries also offer scattered glimpses into the tough side of politics, such as King’s hard-headed calculations on how to enlist new Canadians into the Liberal cause.

More common forms of political writing are autobiographies and memoirs. The two genres are similar, but with subtle differences. Autobiographies tend to be more personal than memoirs; more attention is paid to the human side of politics, a dimension of political life that is too often ignored.

In contrast, memoirs deal more with the social context in which political careers occur, on the dominating issues of the times, and on interactions among actors in the political and governing processes.

Memoirs have become more popular than autobiographies, in part because they typically draw on recent experience, involve less background research and attract more readers. In larger political systems, such as those in the U.K. and the U.S., memoirs can make politicians into celebrity authors who are paid advances, achieve lots of media coverage and receive sizable royalty payments.

In a small province like Manitoba, former politicians do not write their stories for fame and fortune; sales of such books are typically limited.

Beyond a bit of extra cash, the motives for writing memoirs vary. Some leading public figures must be coaxed into the task, out of a sense of social responsibility. This was the case with Manitoba’s greatest premier, Duff Roblin (1958-67), who resisted for decades before publishing Speaking for Myself in 1999.

Filmon introduces his memoir by writing, “Leaving it to those with a political agenda to define the Filmon years has been a frustrating and unsatisfactory experience.” Former NDP premier Howard Pawley’s 2013 memoir, Keep True, was clearly meant to protest what he saw as abandonment of social democratic values through adoption of “third way” thinking made popular by Labour prime minister Tony Blair in the U.K., although he diplomatically avoided directly criticizing NDP premier Gary Doer for doing so.

Many political scientists ignore memoirs as too self-serving. They are said to be subjective, because politicians decide what to include and what to leave out. There is also a tendency to exaggerate the pressures and constraints involved with making government decisions. Overall, they seek to paint a favourable portrait of the author.

While mindful of the inherent limitations of memoirs, I have found them valuable in my research. They represent a middle ground between journalism, which covers contemporary events, and historical studies of the past based on such documents as cabinet papers, which are only made public after 20 or 30 years.

By providing accounts of family backgrounds and early influences, memoirs help us to understand the beliefs politicians bring into public life. They can also provide insights into how issues arise, are understood by decision-makers and why certain policy responses occur. They can also reveal the interplay of different interests and personalities.

Just like British mysteries, which I also avidly read, there are good and bad memoirs. The best among them include not just the recital of accomplishments, but also some reckoning with mistakes.

Paul G. Thomas is professor emeritus of political studies at the University of Manitoba.