Free eBooks Post-Scarcity Anarchism (Working Classics) Available To Downloads
In this series of essays, Murray Bookchin balances his ecological and anarchist vision with the promising opportunities of a “post-scarcity” era. Technological advances during the 20th century have expanded production in the pursuit of corporate profit at the expense of human need and ecological sustainability. New possibilities for human freedom must combine an ecological outlook with the dissolution of hierarchical social relations, capitalism and canonical political orientation. Bookchin’s utopian vision, rooted in the realities of contemporary society, remains refreshingly pragmatic. “Book-chin makes a trenchant analysis of modern society and offers a pointed, provocative discussion of the ecological crisis.”—Library JournalMurray Bookchin has been an active voice in the ecology and anarchist movements for more than 40 years.In Oakland, California on March 24, 2015 a fire destroyed the AK Press warehouse along with several other businesses. Please consider visiting the AK Press website to learn more about the fundraiser to help them and their neighbors.
Series: Working Classics
Paperback: 315 pages
Publisher: AK Press (November 1, 2004)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1904859062
ISBN-13: 978-1904859062
Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 0.6 x 8.5 inches
Shipping Weight: 12.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
Best Sellers Rank: #348,122 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #72 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Politics & Government > Ideologies & Doctrines > Anarchism #115 in Books > History > Historical Study & Educational Resources > Essays #490 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Politics & Government > Ideologies & Doctrines > Communism & Socialism
This landmark of collection of essays is, along with Paul Goodman's "Drawing the Line", perhaps the finest American contribution to Anarchist thought in the latter part of the 20th Century. Bookchin draws on a tremendous wealth of experience as a revolutionary (he got his start as a Communist Party agitator at age 8), and careful study of radical history, ecology, and technology, to put forward the claim that society has for the first time entered onto the threshold of the `post-scarcity' era, an era in which there is sufficient material wealth to provide for the subsistence of all people everywhere. Under these circusmstances, Bookchin argues, the culture of domination and exploitation that grew under conditions of scarcity, want, and competition, can finally give way to an anarchist culture of freedom, localism, community, direct democracy, and human scale.The introduction, and title essay, lay out the particulars of the above argument. The essay "The Forms of Freedom" presents a fascinating capsule history of the spontaneous formation of directly democratic structures of government--factory councils and neighborhood committees-- in revolutionary situations in Paris, Petrograd, Barcelona, and elsewhere, and examines their precursors in the ancient Greeke `polis'. The widely read polemic "Listen, Marxist!", launches a crushing attack on the ideology of the Leninist vanguard groups of the sixties, pointing out the flaws and problems with applying Marx's ideas mechanically to 20th century conditions, and laying bare the inexorable failures of Leninist revolutionaries to deliver on their hollow promises of liberation. Other essays examine ecology and anarchism, technology, and the Paris uprisings of 1968.A tremendously insightful and important collection which is highly instructive for today's social movements.
The content is great. The book edition is poor, there are mistakes on spelling (there are full chapters in which the "i" letters are replaced by "l") and the formatting is poor (the footnotes apear in the middle of the main content).
Ecology plus technology plus a life-time background in revolutionary politics produces Bookchin's masterpiece. This book is well-known, though probably not especially well-read, in anarchist circles. The collection of essays hit on a number of topics orbiting the core notion of corporate profit versus a healthy world and a reestablishment of anarchist ideals in a world (okay, a portion of the world) in which the struggle seems to be for a larger plasma television rather than for a scrap of food.Regardless of your personal take on the essays, I'd recommend the book as an argument that you should listen to. Agree or disagree.
Fantastic book... Excellent insights into what makes working class prospects dismal, even at their supposed best. If the concept of agency intrigues you, and you have a growing suspicion that dependency is at the root of coercive politics, then this will add a bit of fuel to your fire. Read in conjunction with Chomsky and declare yourself a Libertarian today :).
this book is useful, but, as the production date is 1971, this book is a fair bit dated, although it does look toward the future to what will (we hope) come to pass. on balance: a good book and one for the archives.
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