Critical Review Of 'Memoirs Of Extraordinary Delusions'

Review of “Memoirs of Extraordinary Delusions”
Foolishness is a weakness that men are privy to; what is most intriguing is that foolishness may not just be experienced by some men but projected by entire nations. The book “Memoirs of Extraordinary Delusions” is an historical non-fiction narrative or memoir as indicated in the title, written by Charles Mackay in 1996. Mackay describes popular misapprehensions that people, the majority of nations including elites and rulers, have had during different times in the past centuries. Greed, desire to display wealth and rank, bandwagon effect and conniving minds are recurring themes in the stories told in this book. Mackay, in the book, aims at pointing out the influence and ill effects of misconceptions
Mackay starts with economic delusions conveyed through the stories of the Mississippi scheme, the South Sea bubble and Tulipmania. It is ironic that bubble is used to qualify the South Sea dilemma and scheme used for that of the Mississippi. The occurrence in Great Britain involved more connivance, dishonesty, embezzlement and corruption compared to that at France, though they both result from delusions. The Mississippi scheme and South Sea bubble both originated from one man, John Law and Harley, Earl of Oxford(Mackay,1996). The Mississipi scheme started out as a great plan, that seemed to save France out its economic crisis at the initiation of implementation of Law’s plan. Due to mismanagement, specifically giving out more shares than there actually was, passing of poorly evaluated bills, the plan back-fired and France fell into worse crisis than before. In Britain, the South Sea company deceptively increased the value of their shares through resulting in the distribution of funds that they did not possess hence the bubble. Tulipmania is the most ludicrous of the three events. Tulips, a flower, was increasingly sought after by the rich till it became a symbol of influence. The price became very expensive and stockjobbers used it to make lots of money. The merchants of tulips forgot everything
It is narrated in the third person but the voice of the narrator, makes the reader feel like the story is being told to them. Mackay does not simply narrate the story he also gives his interpretation of the story. This makes the book more than just a compilation of stories but one that will make the reader exercise his or her intellect. Although, while stating his comments on the events, not all of Mackay’s arguments are sound; he uses ad hominem approach. In the Mississippi scheme, he attacks King Louis XIV describing him as “that bigoted and tyrannical monarch” (Mackay, 1996) without any evidence in support of his claim. Mackay also includes quotes from famous authors who wrote about the subject which increases the credibility of the stories. In the “Mississippi Scheme” while describing the anger of the people at John Law, Mackay includes a popular song in France that was in the “letters of the Duchess of Orleans” (Mackay,