4. Here I stand
When the Catholic Church demanded that Martin Luther repudiate his
attack on the authority of popes and councils, he refused to recant: “I will not
recant anything, for to go against conscience is neither right nor safe.” Nor
would he compromise: “Here I stand, I cannot do otherwise.” Luther’s
intransigence was based on the divinity of his positions. When defining what
was right, there was no room for compromise. His firmness had profound
long-term consequences; his attacks led to the Protestant Reformation and
substantially altered the mediæval Catholic Church.*
Similarly, Charles de Gaulle used the power of intransigence to become
a powerful player in the arena of international relations. As his biographer
Don Cook expressed it, “[De Gaulle] could create power for himself with
nothing but his own rectitude, intelligence, personality and sense of destiny.”
But above all his was “the power of intransigence.” During the Second World
War, as the self-proclaimed leader in exile of a defeated and occupied nation,
he held his own with Roosevelt and Churchill. In the 1960s, his presidential
“Non!” swung several decisions France’s way in the European Economic
Community.
In what way did his intransigence give him power in bargaining?
When de Gaulle took a truly irrevocable position, the other parties in the
negotiation were left with just two options — to take it or to leave it. For
example, he single-handedly kept Britain out of the European Economic
Community, once in 1963 and again in 1968; the other countries were forced
either to accept de Gaulle’s veto or to break up the EEC. De Gaulle judged his
position carefully to ensure that it would be accepted. But that often left the
larger (and unfair) division of the spoils to France. De Gaulle’s intransigence
denied the other party an opportunity to come back with a counteroffer that
was acceptable.
In practice, this is easier said than done, for two kinds of reasons. The
first kind stems from the fact that bargaining usually involves considerations
beside the pie on today’s table. The perception that you have been excessively
greedy may make others less willing to negotiate with you in the future. Or,
next time they may be firmer bargainers as they try to recapture some of
their perceived losses. On a personal level, an unfair win may spoil business
relations, or even personal relations. Indeed, biographer David Schoenbrun
faulted de Gaulle’s chauvinism: “In human relations, those who do not love
are rarely loved: those who will not be friends end up by having none. De
Gaulle’s rejection of friendship thus hurt France.” A compromise in the short
term may prove a better strategy over the long haul.
The second kind of problem lies in achieving the necessary degree of
intransigence. Luther and de Gaulle achieved this through their
personalities. But this entails a cost. An inflexible personality is not
something you can just turn on and off. Although being inflexible can sometimes wear down an opponent and force him to make concessions, it can
equally well allow small losses to grow into major disasters.
Ferdinand de Lesseps was a mildly competent engineer with
extraordinary vision and determination. He is famous for building the Suez
Canal in what seemed almost impossible conditions. He did not recognize the
impossible and thereby accomplished it. Later, he tried using the same
technique to build the Panama Canal. It ended in disaster.* Whereas the
sands of the Nile yielded to his will, tropical malaria did not. The problem for
de Lesseps was that his inflexible personality could not admit defeat even
when the battle was lost. How can one achieve selective inflexibility?
Although there is no ideal solution, there are various means by which
commitment can be achieved and sustained.