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Anarchism: A Very Short Introduction | 
 enlarge | Author: Colin Ward
Publisher: OUP Oxford
Category: Book
List Price: £7.99
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Rating:  2 reviews
Sales Rank: 48986
Media: Paperback
Pages: 126
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.3
Dimensions (in): 6.6 x 4.2 x 0.4
ISBN: 0192804774
Dewey Decimal Number: 335.83
EAN: 9780192804778
ASIN: 0192804774
Publication Date: October 21, 2004
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
 Surprisingly good attempt to make anarchism seem reasonable November 17, 2008
PhilosopherKing (London)
The author had been an architect and a teacher and this book is a brave attempt to make anarchy seem reasonable.
The author of course dismisses all the pointless assassinations carried out by anarchists in the late nineteennth and early twentieth centuries as mere aberrations.
Although some of his ideas initially sound attractive and plausible a litte thought would soon make one dismisss them as impractable.
Whilst I don't support anarchism, I do however think that our government has become too big and too involved with every aspect of our daily lives. We do need to find a way of getting unnecessary governmental interference and bureaucracy out of our lives.
 Provocative, October 21, 2007
calmly
6 out of 6 found this review helpful
Ward quotes Martin Buber: "All forms of government has this in common: each possesses more power than is required by the given conditions." Buber calls this this "political surplus". One only has to look around the world to see how such political surplus is spent.
I was surprised at the extent of anarchist influence. Ward devotes 4 pages to how anarchism functioned practically is Spain in the 1930's, where 3 million people were organized in anarchist communes.
Anarchists have been at the forefront of considering ecological sustainability. Ward cites authors who believe that anarchism is the only approach that can meet the ecological challenges we face.
Given the problems socialism has faced, Ward argues it is too soon to write off anarchism when looking for alternatives to present forms of government. We may have been taught little about anarchism except to be dismissive of it, but Ward's book is an excellent start to understanding what anarchism offers. There are many references to the works of anarchists.
If capitalism seems to work, albeit at a considerable ecological cost, the growing ecological crises may force us within our lifetimes to explore alternative ways of living. Socialism may not be a big enough change, retaining as it does a strong central government with its own political surplus. If you think you can manage more political participation that casting a vote every few years, anarchism may be worth studying.
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