Anarchism resists centralized dictates. easy categorization or
top-down organization. Hence, scholarly work on anarchist movements has
been scattered. Academics are unlikely to moonlight as black bloc
activists or engage in direct action such as the Occupy movement or
encampments and protests against the state or the system.
Anthropologists or literary critics who champion anarchist investigation
may find their analyses marginalized or ignored, while grassroots
activists may be suspicious of the academic apparatus.
The two dozen contributors assembled in this volume come from around the world and break down the barriers between participation and observation. These mentors use a multidisciplinary approach that crosses divisions within the academic community and, more importantly, outside university walls. Originally published in 2012 as The Continuum Companion to Anarchism, this revised paperback edition is available at a more affordable price and includes Ruth Kinna’s updated opening and concluding remarks.
Saul Newman opens a chapter on post-anarchism by defining anarchism itself as “a political and ethical critique of power, particularly that which is embedded in the state and in capitalist economic relations.” This critique “contends that life can be lived without government and that social relations can and should be organized through decentralized, voluntary and cooperative structures, and on the basis of liberty and equality.” Newman applies Michel Foucault’s “war model” to criticize radical political methods bent on revolt against and elimination of the opposition. Instead, Newman aspires toward a post-anarchist “political-ethical-spiritual project of autonomy.” As with many of the subsequent entries, his essay ends just as it becomes interesting. But Newman may ignite a spark of curiosity and spur eager readers to action.
This do-it-yourself approach emerged more playfully during Foucault’s rise to international prominence in the late ’60s and early ’70s. It challenged earlier theories and champions of anarchism and invited counterculture efforts to expand the possibilities of the body in more creative ways. It liberated individual as well as mass movements as a viable way to move beyond trade unions or general strikes, and suggested that change might come by less dramatic means such as alternative structures and inspired attitudes flourishing behind the scenes.
The anthology’s most creative chapter is enriched by channeling older forms of resistance to newer versions of existence. Jonathan Purkis’ “The Hitchhiker as Theorist: Re-thinking Sociology and Anthropology from an Anarchist Perspective” explores the “mutual aid, cooperation and trust” of underground economies that operate largely free of monetary transactions. Urban or rural, on the road or off the grid, this far-flung network is sustained by trust between hitchhikers and their supporters. Open space for communal and individual organization can thrive out of reach of the law and conventional power relations.
Uri Gordon encourages further research based on participant-observation, providing guidance on framing proposals to meet ethical standards and advice on how conduct such research within a potentially suspicious atmosphere. The subversive potential of Gordon and his fellow social scientists David Graeber and Richard Day finds a spirited defense in Laurence Davis’ “Anarchism and the Future of Revolution.” Davis rallies to his colleagues’ side against those who indict the professors for being insufficiently radicalized, too cautious in cheering on the imminent global triumph of the 99%.
In “Genders and Sexualities in Anarchist Movements,” Sandra Jeppesen and Holly Nazar explore how change can come by more intimate means. Along with a literary chapter by David Goodway, Jeppesen and Nazar nod to to the imaginative gender and social constructs of science fiction and fantasy writer Ursula LeGuin. However, the book’s treatment of popular culture remains under-examined compared to its denser political and theoretical investigations. The index doesn’t even mention music: no Sex Pistols, let alone Crass. Fine arts coverage is similarly less than comprehensive. The section on art history seems to exist mostly for its author to defend his scholarly publication record against a Marxist-oriented critic. This is part of what must be a lively dialogue, but it’s out of place in a reference work, crowding out other voices from the intersection between art and anarchism.
The book nevertheless represents a variety of voices that address social ecology, Latin America, analytical philosophy, anarchist forebears and theorists, geography and urban space and issues of race and ethnicity. A useful supplement defines key terms, a guide to internet, print and other media resources and lists of other reference works. These appendices redress some of the shortcomings of the essays in breadth and scope. True to an anarchist spirit, the archives, networks, and collectives compiled represent the potential applied by activists past and present. These efforts prefigure ways in which we can start to live freer now, rather than daydream about future liberation. (Spectrum Culture 9-29-14; Amazon US 2-6-15)
The two dozen contributors assembled in this volume come from around the world and break down the barriers between participation and observation. These mentors use a multidisciplinary approach that crosses divisions within the academic community and, more importantly, outside university walls. Originally published in 2012 as The Continuum Companion to Anarchism, this revised paperback edition is available at a more affordable price and includes Ruth Kinna’s updated opening and concluding remarks.
Saul Newman opens a chapter on post-anarchism by defining anarchism itself as “a political and ethical critique of power, particularly that which is embedded in the state and in capitalist economic relations.” This critique “contends that life can be lived without government and that social relations can and should be organized through decentralized, voluntary and cooperative structures, and on the basis of liberty and equality.” Newman applies Michel Foucault’s “war model” to criticize radical political methods bent on revolt against and elimination of the opposition. Instead, Newman aspires toward a post-anarchist “political-ethical-spiritual project of autonomy.” As with many of the subsequent entries, his essay ends just as it becomes interesting. But Newman may ignite a spark of curiosity and spur eager readers to action.
This do-it-yourself approach emerged more playfully during Foucault’s rise to international prominence in the late ’60s and early ’70s. It challenged earlier theories and champions of anarchism and invited counterculture efforts to expand the possibilities of the body in more creative ways. It liberated individual as well as mass movements as a viable way to move beyond trade unions or general strikes, and suggested that change might come by less dramatic means such as alternative structures and inspired attitudes flourishing behind the scenes.
The anthology’s most creative chapter is enriched by channeling older forms of resistance to newer versions of existence. Jonathan Purkis’ “The Hitchhiker as Theorist: Re-thinking Sociology and Anthropology from an Anarchist Perspective” explores the “mutual aid, cooperation and trust” of underground economies that operate largely free of monetary transactions. Urban or rural, on the road or off the grid, this far-flung network is sustained by trust between hitchhikers and their supporters. Open space for communal and individual organization can thrive out of reach of the law and conventional power relations.
Uri Gordon encourages further research based on participant-observation, providing guidance on framing proposals to meet ethical standards and advice on how conduct such research within a potentially suspicious atmosphere. The subversive potential of Gordon and his fellow social scientists David Graeber and Richard Day finds a spirited defense in Laurence Davis’ “Anarchism and the Future of Revolution.” Davis rallies to his colleagues’ side against those who indict the professors for being insufficiently radicalized, too cautious in cheering on the imminent global triumph of the 99%.
In “Genders and Sexualities in Anarchist Movements,” Sandra Jeppesen and Holly Nazar explore how change can come by more intimate means. Along with a literary chapter by David Goodway, Jeppesen and Nazar nod to to the imaginative gender and social constructs of science fiction and fantasy writer Ursula LeGuin. However, the book’s treatment of popular culture remains under-examined compared to its denser political and theoretical investigations. The index doesn’t even mention music: no Sex Pistols, let alone Crass. Fine arts coverage is similarly less than comprehensive. The section on art history seems to exist mostly for its author to defend his scholarly publication record against a Marxist-oriented critic. This is part of what must be a lively dialogue, but it’s out of place in a reference work, crowding out other voices from the intersection between art and anarchism.
The book nevertheless represents a variety of voices that address social ecology, Latin America, analytical philosophy, anarchist forebears and theorists, geography and urban space and issues of race and ethnicity. A useful supplement defines key terms, a guide to internet, print and other media resources and lists of other reference works. These appendices redress some of the shortcomings of the essays in breadth and scope. True to an anarchist spirit, the archives, networks, and collectives compiled represent the potential applied by activists past and present. These efforts prefigure ways in which we can start to live freer now, rather than daydream about future liberation. (Spectrum Culture 9-29-14; Amazon US 2-6-15)
Table Of Contents
Part 1: Research on Anarchism
Ruth Kinna, Introduction
Approaches to anarchist research
Saul Newman, Research methods and problems: Postanarchism
Benjamin Franks, Anarchism and analytic philosophy
Allan Antliff, Anarchism and Art History: Methodologies of Insurrection
Uri Gordon, Participant Observation
Alex Prichard, Anarchy, Anarchism and International Relations
Current research in anarchist studies
Carissa Honeywell, Anarchism old and new
Jonathan Purkis, The hitchhiker as theorist: Re-thinking sociology and anthropology from an anarchist perspective
Sandra Jeppesen Holly Nazar, Genders and sexualities in anarchist movements
David Goodway, Literature and anarchism
Laurence Davis, Anarchism and the future of revolution
Andy Price, Social ecology
Sara Motta, Leyendo el anarchismo a través de ojos latinoamericanos: Reading Anarchism through Latin American Eyes
Ian G. Cook & Joanne Norcup, Geographies and Urban Space
Süreyyya Evren, There Ain't No Black in the Anarchist Flag! Race, Ethnicity and Anarchism
Ruth Kinna, Where to Now? Future Directions for anarchist research
Part 2: Materials for further Research
Key terms
Resources
Bibliography
Guide to bibliographical and reference works
Selective guide to non-English language sources
Table Of Contents
Part 1: Research on Anarchism
Ruth Kinna, Introduction
Approaches to anarchist research
Saul Newman, Research methods and problems: Postanarchism
Benjamin Franks, Anarchism and analytic philosophy
Allan Antliff, Anarchism and Art History: Methodologies of Insurrection
Uri Gordon, Participant Observation
Alex Prichard, Anarchy, Anarchism and International Relations
Current research in anarchist studies
Carissa Honeywell, Anarchism old and new
Jonathan Purkis, The hitchhiker as theorist: Re-thinking sociology and anthropology from an anarchist perspective
Sandra Jeppesen Holly Nazar, Genders and sexualities in anarchist movements
David Goodway, Literature and anarchism
Laurence Davis, Anarchism and the future of revolution
Andy Price, Social ecology
Sara Motta, Leyendo el anarchismo a través de ojos latinoamericanos: Reading Anarchism through Latin American Eyes
Ian G. Cook & Joanne Norcup, Geographies and Urban Space
Süreyyya Evren, There Ain't No Black in the Anarchist Flag! Race, Ethnicity and Anarchism
Ruth Kinna, Where to Now? Future Directions for anarchist research
Part 2: Materials for further Research
Key terms
Resources
Bibliography
Guide to bibliographical and reference works
Selective guide to non-English language sources
Table Of Contents
Part 1: Research on Anarchism
Ruth Kinna, Introduction
Approaches to anarchist research
Saul Newman, Research methods and problems: Postanarchism
Benjamin Franks, Anarchism and analytic philosophy
Allan Antliff, Anarchism and Art History: Methodologies of Insurrection
Uri Gordon, Participant Observation
Alex Prichard, Anarchy, Anarchism and International Relations
Current research in anarchist studies
Carissa Honeywell, Anarchism old and new
Jonathan Purkis, The hitchhiker as theorist: Re-thinking sociology and anthropology from an anarchist perspective
Sandra Jeppesen Holly Nazar, Genders and sexualities in anarchist movements
David Goodway, Literature and anarchism
Laurence Davis, Anarchism and the future of revolution
Andy Price, Social ecology
Sara Motta, Leyendo el anarchismo a través de ojos latinoamericanos: Reading Anarchism through Latin American Eyes
Ian G. Cook & Joanne Norcup, Geographies and Urban Space
Süreyyya Evren, There Ain't No Black in the Anarchist Flag! Race, Ethnicity and Anarchism
Ruth Kinna, Where to Now? Future Directions for anarchist research
Part 2: Materials for further Research
Key terms
Resources
Bibliography
Guide to bibliographical and reference works
Selective guide to non-English language sources
Table Of Contents
Part 1: Research on Anarchism
Ruth Kinna, Introduction
Approaches to anarchist research
Saul Newman, Research methods and problems: Postanarchism
Benjamin Franks, Anarchism and analytic philosophy
Allan Antliff, Anarchism and Art History: Methodologies of Insurrection
Uri Gordon, Participant Observation
Alex Prichard, Anarchy, Anarchism and International Relations
Current research in anarchist studies
Carissa Honeywell, Anarchism old and new
Jonathan Purkis, The hitchhiker as theorist: Re-thinking sociology and anthropology from an anarchist perspective
Sandra Jeppesen Holly Nazar, Genders and sexualities in anarchist movements
David Goodway, Literature and anarchism
Laurence Davis, Anarchism and the future of revolution
Andy Price, Social ecology
Sara Motta, Leyendo el anarchismo a través de ojos latinoamericanos: Reading Anarchism through Latin American Eyes
Ian G. Cook & Joanne Norcup, Geographies and Urban Space
Süreyyya Evren, There Ain't No Black in the Anarchist Flag! Race, Ethnicity and Anarchism
Ruth Kinna, Where to Now? Future Directions for anarchist research
Part 2: Materials for further Research
Key terms
Resources
Bibliography
Guide to bibliographical and reference works
Selective guide to non-English language sources
Table Of Contents
Part 1: Research on Anarchism
Ruth Kinna, Introduction
Approaches to anarchist research
Saul Newman, Research methods and problems: Postanarchism
Benjamin Franks, Anarchism and analytic philosophy
Allan Antliff, Anarchism and Art History: Methodologies of Insurrection
Uri Gordon, Participant Observation
Alex Prichard, Anarchy, Anarchism and International Relations
Current research in anarchist studies
Carissa Honeywell, Anarchism old and new
Jonathan Purkis, The hitchhiker as theorist: Re-thinking sociology and anthropology from an anarchist perspective
Sandra Jeppesen Holly Nazar, Genders and sexualities in anarchist movements
David Goodway, Literature and anarchism
Laurence Davis, Anarchism and the future of revolution
Andy Price, Social ecology
Sara Motta, Leyendo el anarchismo a través de ojos latinoamericanos: Reading Anarchism through Latin American Eyes
Ian G. Cook & Joanne Norcup, Geographies and Urban Space
Süreyyya Evren, There Ain't No Black in the Anarchist Flag! Race, Ethnicity and Anarchism
Ruth Kinna, Where to Now? Future Directions for anarchist research
Part 2: Materials for further Research
Key terms
Resources
Bibliography
Guide to bibliographical and reference works
Selective guide to non-English language sources
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