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Click here for one-page information sheet on this product. Cart Contents. Recent Posts. Price: 0. Add To Wishlist. Overview Tell a Friend. Send Message. Anarchism Books Combo Pack. A fantastic combo pack of anarchist philosophies, conversations, history and reference not to be missed! Peter Marshall Navigating the broad "river of anarchy," from Taoism to Situationism, from anarcho-syndicalists to anarcha-feminists, this volume is an authoritative and lively study of a widely misunderstood subject. What Is Anarchism? Donald Rooum This book is an introduction to the development of anarchist thought, useful not only to propagandists and proselytizers of anarchism but also to teachers and students, and to all who want to uncover the basic core of anarchism. Editors: Raymond Craib and Barry Maxwell A collection of essays on the questions of geographical and political peripheries in anarchist theory. Voices of the Paris Commune. Presenting a balanced and critical survey, the detailed document covers not only classic anarchist thinkers--such as Godwin, Proudhon, Bakunin, Kropotkin, Reclus, and Emma Goldman--but also other libertarian figures, such as Nietzsche, Camus, Gandhi, Foucault, and Chomsky. Essential reading for anyone wishing to understand what anarchists stand for and what they have achieved, this fascinating account also includes an epilogue that examines the most recent developments, including postanarchism and anarcho-primitivism as well as the anarchist contributions to the peace, green, and global justice movements of the 21st century. Additional Product Features Dewey Edition. Show More Show Less. Any Condition Any Condition. See all 7 - All listings for this product. No ratings or reviews yet No ratings or reviews yet. Be the first to write a review. Best Selling in Nonfiction See all. Greenlights by Matthew McConaughey Hardcover 5. Account Options Anmelden. Meine Mediathek Hilfe Erweiterte Buchsuche. E-Book anzeigen. Demanding the Impossible : A History of Anarchism. Peter H. A fascinating and comprehensive history, 'Demanding the Impossible' is a challenging and thought-provoking exploration of anarchist ideas and actions from ancient times to the present day. Demanding the Impossible - Peter Marshall - Google Books

November History Today. Minogue, Kenneth February 9, The Sunday Telegraph. Publishers Weekly. April 12, Roth, Gary March Critical Sociology. Sinai, Joshua Perspectives on Terrorism. Tomchuk, Travis Left History. Walter, Nicolas February 27, The London Review of Books. Ward, Colin January 31, The Times Educational Supplement : Ward, Colin February 14, Anarchism portal Books portal. Categories : non-fiction books History books about anarchism HarperCollins books PM Press books Political science book stubs Anarchism book stubs. Namespaces Article Talk. Views Read Edit View history. Help Learn to edit Community portal Recent changes Upload file. Not just by superior force but by the fact that the force represents something — the reality of the situation. As a romantic, I am definitely with all these rebellions but, let's face it, participation is heroic but futile, an act of suicide. It would be like Mishima's hari-kiri only for the goodies. The truth is they did not win for very good reasons related to what we are as human beings. The only successful anarchist rebellion would be one that could change humanity — and that is very dangerous territory indeed, a repetition by force of what the Bolsheviks tried and failed to do. All in all, this book, which is highly sympathetic to the movement, tells us that anarchic thinking is like a chair that is very appealing to the eye but falls apart when someone tries to sit on it. If it did not exist, it would have to be invented but only as a constraint or restraint on power, by promising rebellion if lines were crossed but not as an option for any social organization that is actually viable. This has implications for the four main current strands of quasi-anarchic thinking in the world today — hacker activism, greenery which has already compromised with reality to gain a power that it probably does not deserve , the Occupy Movement and anarcho-capitalist libertarianism. It is interesting that the State did not even bother to do that. Occupy is particularly daft from a classical anarchist perspective. The general public, of course, has seen through this. The most threatening to the State may be hacker activism and then only because its more louche side is quite prepared to act as intellectual muscle for organized crime. Kim Dotcom is an anarchist of sorts but not quite what Prince Pyotr Kropotkin had in mind. Even in Greece today, where one would most expect insurrection, the struggle for mastery over a corrupt and failed bourgeois elite, backed by the European Union, is in the hands either of sensible Leftists who have no intention of unraveling the State and a bunch of gangster fascists. In Catalonia, the drive for independence is also no longer associated with anarchist ideology but with a revived Leftism. Worse, this Euro-Leftism is not only not anarchist in the traditional sense but is imbued with an ideology of identity politics that wholly relies on the State to impose its cultural agenda on an increasingly resentful mass at least that proportion of the mass not on the State pay roll, admittedly a decreasing proportion. Having said all that, if we winnow out perhaps seven out of ten of the anarcho-intellectuals as either faith-based essentialists and we include the Hegelians or narcissistic imposers of their values and personality on the world, we are left with some good people and good thinking. The American Paul Goodman stood out in this respect. And it was good to see Foucault briefly included as gad fly. There is real value in anarchism but not as praxis or ideology. Its value lies in it being a reminder of the core value to humanity of personal autonomy and of individuation. People of anarchist bent would do much better to hold their noses and engage with the political process and the State through improved organization, if only to halt the growing power of authoritarian Leftists, fascists and religious believers. Camus' concept of rebellion as preferable to revolution holds water here - we can all constantly rebel against the unwarranted demands and claims of others. The final pages of the book raise issues with anarchism as practical politics but by this time we have all made our mind up — either we are anarchists or we are not. I am not — more so after reading the book than before. My initial sympathies dissipated chapter by chapter as I realized that I would be filled with a terminal boredom by these men and their utopias. Anarchists are too often people who have lost their sense of reality, equally as much as the religious types they claim to despise. In some cases horror of horrors! Any politics that has a place for invented beings and universal consciousnesses must be considered dangerous and yet a small minority of anarchists persist in this sort of flummery. Like Marxism, anarchism can be religion by other means and so deeply dangerous to non-believers in the long run. Nevertheless, this book is strongly recommended as a sound guide to what anarchists have thought in the past and what they did in history. View all 10 comments. Neither do you have to finish reading this book to rate it, nor do you have to be an anarchist to love it. Peter Marshall is really a hell of a good writer. His profound account of anarchism is rare and almost unique. I was not that much enthusiastic about the book in the beginning, when Professor Chomsky recommended it among some others as essential readings on Anarchism, but after I read almost pages out of the , I would be mistaken if not recommending it to whoever may be concerned. It Neither do you have to finish reading this book to rate it, nor do you have to be an anarchist to love it. It is not just a "Political Philosophy" book, but a profound cultural account for the rise of one of the most controversial western schools of thought May 15, Steven Peterson rated it really liked it. This is a wide ranging overview of the political theory of anarchism. In that endeavor, it is similar in scope to Woodcock's esteemed volume. The work begins by defining the subject. The second part explores forerunners of anarchism--from the east to the Greeks and so on. Part 4? Classic anarchist thinkers, such as Godwin, Stirner, Proudhon, Bakunin, and so on. Part five focuses This is a wide ranging overview of the political theory of anarchism. Part five focuses on anarchism in action--its manifestations in different countries e. It concludes with discussions of modern anarchism and the legacy of this perspective. A book that tries to cover so much risks being a mild wide and an inch deep. There is some of that, of course, but the book would prove a useful introduction to readers interested in the subject. May 14, Michael Schmidt rated it liked it Shelves: anarchism. I have to give credit where it is due, and when I picked up Peter Marshall's Demanding the Impossible at Adams' Books in Durban the symbol on its s concrete facade was a red Circle-A back in the early s, it was the first book I had laid hands on that attempted a global synopsis of anarchist thought and action. In many ways, it was hugely influential on me as a young anarchist and lead to my own studies into the history of the anarchist movement and its mass-organisational expressions, I have to give credit where it is due, and when I picked up Peter Marshall's Demanding the Impossible at Adams' Books in Durban the symbol on its s concrete facade was a red Circle-A back in the early s, it was the first book I had laid hands on that attempted a global synopsis of anarchist thought and action. In many ways, it was hugely influential on me as a young anarchist and lead to my own studies into the history of the anarchist movement and its mass-organisational expressions, which have resulted in my books Cartography of Revolutionary Anarchism first, French-language, edition , and Wildfire forthcoming. That said, it was specifically the imbalance in Marshall's work between a rather conventional heavy focus on Europe and North America, and the slight representation of Latin America where in most countries the movement overwhelmingly dominated the organised labour movement until the imposition of dictatorships in the s, plus a really poor and factually incorrect overview of the Argentine movement in Rebel Worker that lead directly to me starting work 15 years ago on my own history. The problem is that that many historians, in misguided attempts to either detect its origins or secure legitimacy for the anarchist tradition, claim a long prehistory for the movement. This lumping together of the five with de facto revolutionary anarchists Bakunin and Kropotkin, thus produces a motley crew of very disparate thinkers who really only have their anti-statism in common. Although Eltzbacher was a judge and thus an enemy of our movement, anarchists themselves including Kropotkin adopted his mismatched collection of thinkers as their own — the result being that 20th Century anarchism was often viewed among many in its own ranks, as well as among broader society, as a chaotic tendency in theory and practice. Our approach outraged many self-described anarchists, but the exciting result was that while those who followed Eltzbacher produced very slender, largely North Atlanticist histories of the movement and Marshall, like Max Nettlau before him, is an honourable exception , applying our narrow focus to the historical record produced a startlingly broader picture of mass anarchist movements across almost the entire world than was previously recognised by either academics or anarchists themselves. Aside from this conceptual weakness, Marshall has a well-deserved place on the bookshelf of any anarchist, libertarian socialist, anti-authoritarian, or political scientist. If one of the objectives of historical works is to provoke others - and not necessarily even of similar views - to start examining aspects of history in ways they never considered before, with fresh eyes, and as a result to produce their own intellectually challenging works, then Marshall succeeded brilliantly. Demand the Impossible has been on my to-read list ever since I saw its cover with a Noam Chomsky quote on the book racks at Powells. However, this is one hefty book and I didnt want to tackle it until I knew I was mentally prepared. Im glad I braced myself because Demand the Impossible is thorough to say the least. Ive read a good amount of anarchist literature and have been interested in its history and theories over the years. It might have improved my understanding later on if I had used this book as a crash course. Starting with the Taoist movement many centuries ago, Peter Marshall elegantly takes us through the different political movements that have adopted anarchist ideas. Demand the Impossible discusses the forerunners of anarchism that were prevalent in old Asian, Greek, Christian and European societies, then touches on the old libertarian thinkers who had an anarchist slant in their beliefs, followed by the more prominent thinkers. Throughout, Marshall displays an expertise for their philosophy and gets at the core of what their ideas were. At the end, Marshall focuses on the trends worldwide and movements that have claimed anarchist principles, like the Mexican revolution, the Spanish civil war, the protest in France, and more recent events. Regretfully, this book was not updated in time to include the Occupy movement. Having read most of these authors before, I can tell Marshall is doing a lot of the heavy work for us in trying to understand what some of them were trying to get at. A lot this source material is dry, convoluted, and very difficult to read and having someone like Marshall extract its meaning for a general audience is vital. I cannot stress it enough: this book is thorough and well put together. Demand the Impossible is simply exhaustive and Peter Marshall has done an incredible job. Every historian will have to reckon with it. May 20, Nicolas Garcia rated it it was amazing. View 1 comment. Jul 21, K rated it really liked it Shelves: history. This is the definitive history of Anarchism as a cultural movement, sociopolitical phenomenon and lastly, a fairly coherent political philosophy with its own analyses, solutions, trends and debates within its own framework. Peter Marshall delivers a very impressive book, both in depth and scope. In it, one can find pieces from a lucid array of thinkers that range from Taoism to contemporary right wing libertarianism, as well as lessons in history and some political and ethical theory to This is the definitive history of Anarchism as a cultural movement, sociopolitical phenomenon and lastly, a fairly coherent political philosophy with its own analyses, solutions, trends and debates within its own framework. In it, one can find pieces from a lucid array of thinkers that range from Taoism to contemporary right wing libertarianism, as well as lessons in history and some political and ethical theory to complement all of the above. There are interesting discussions on the ideas of prominent figures from Rousseau to Kropotkin and from Josiah Warren to Bertrand Russell, along with a fair share of criticism on most of them. Anarchosyndicalist, collectivist and libertarian experiments are also discussed in an interesting manner, which pinpoints their evident strengths as well as their weaknesses. While it's more useful as a reference book, it can be read at once but one should bear in mind that there's some repetition and I can understand if the reader occasionally looses interest. It's so complete which can lead to ignoring parts of it. For example, I found the chapter on anarchist movements in Asia quite uninteresting but this was a result of my own idiosyncracy. However, one can't blame the author for completeness and this was a monumental task for anyone to achieve. I found Peter Marshall's effort the most praiseworthy of all. Apr 02, Zain Haider rated it it was amazing. If you are an Anarchist, question the monopoly of the state on your lives or just have a problem with Authority and Power then this book is and should become your Bible, Quran and everything in between. It is a powerful analysis of the most questioning and perhaps most important political philosophy of them all. Sep 18, Piers Haslam rated it it was amazing Shelves: history. This great volume is fine introduction to the anarchist creed and its history. Marshall traces the story of libertarian and freedom-loving strains throughout human history, and argues the case for these ideas having been around for an awfully long time. A good pages is used documenting this before Proudhon the first self-professed anarchist is discussed, and in this way Marshall makes this a story of freedom and popular movements against authority rather than simply of the anarchist This great volume is fine introduction to the anarchist creed and its history. A good pages is used documenting this before Proudhon the first self-professed anarchist is discussed, and in this way Marshall makes this a story of freedom and popular movements against authority rather than simply of the anarchist movement. I found the chapter on the millenarian sects of the Middle Ages particularly interesting, as I was already familiar with the radical Taborites of Bohemia described. It was fantastic to see them examined from a directly anarchist perspective. He then reviews all the classic anarchist thinkers: Goldman, Bakunin, Proudhon, Stirner, Kropotkin, etc. But it goes way beyond this; many more thinkers with anarchistic echoes and ideas are discussed in less detail, with many wonderfully esoteric choices like Oscar Wilde and De Sade. This gives the book a great colour and life. I was stunned by the utterly agreeable nature of Marshall himself. This is quite right. Marshall holds pacifistic beliefs, is an advocate of anarchism without adjectives, and is non-dogmatic in his approach to anarchism; he's someone who truly loves the variety and vigour of the human race. So be aware that the book is kind of biased, but one can always read through that I find. I hold a position very close to Marshall's, so it worked well for me, that I can say. One thing I would like to have seen discussed more would have been the anarchist terrorism of the s and s. It's alluded to very often, but no chapter is dedicated to it. I think there should have been one, but I can see why Marshall left it out. I think for a full historical picture it would have been an extremely welcome addition. It was a fantastic journey for me, and I hope to read more about anarchism in the future. Oct 08, Meghan Fidler rated it liked it Shelves: ticker-tape-parade. Marshall is impressive in his attempt to cover a wide breadth of people, religions, regions and governments, but the manuscript is also weak because of it, unable to give full depictions of any topic broached it is lamentable, for example, that the majority of women activists are submerged as 'lovers' of the featured men. Covering everyone is impossible, but Marshall made the attempt, so his choices for inclusion are political commentaries in and of themselves. This is more of a reference Marshall is impressive in his attempt to cover a wide breadth of people, religions, regions and governments, but the manuscript is also weak because of it, unable to give full depictions of any topic broached it is lamentable, for example, that the majority of women activists are submerged as 'lovers' of the featured men. This is more of a reference manual than a book, and will be very useful for me to keep on hand as such. Jun 27, Ronan rated it really liked it Shelves: anarchism , history. Very well written and researched so far. Wouldn't quite agree with his glowing endorsement of Taoism, Buddhism, and some Greek philosophy though. The chapter on Bakunin was very interesting, I'm not sure whether it counts as a hatchet job or a balanced appraisal of the man though. I'm inclined to lean towards the latter as Marshall is consistently balanced and generous, he certainly doesn't lean to the fanatical attacks of other writers on Bakunin. Mar 10, emma rated it it was amazing. Some books change the way you see the world and Demanding the Impossible is one of them. It covers too much to give comprehensive detail on everything, but it's an excellent history and a great starting point for further exploration. Dec 14, Sumayyah rated it really liked it. Excellent resource for the future. Of course, this book feels alarmingly like a text book. Jun 19, Justin Martin rated it really liked it Shelves: non-fiction. Anarchism at its core is a debate about how a human acts when left to themselves, and this is a lively one that did more than any nonfiction book to rewire my priors, even when picking through the opinions of somebody flagrantly wrong. Jul 27, Brandon Love rated it really liked it Shelves: read-nonfiction. Clear, detailed and thorough history of anarchism. Marshall does a great job connecting anarchy to its philosophical forerunners. Marshall also provides detailed accounts of the major anarchist thinkers in the movement and provides information on how their work affected the society Clear, detailed and thorough history of anarchism. Marshall also provides detailed accounts of the major anarchist thinkers in the movement and provides information on how their work affected the society and the movement. From Godwin, the first to express anarchist ideals, without using the title interestingly enough, he was married to the first feminist philosopher Mary Wollstonecraft to Gandhi, who was profoundly influenced by Tolstoy's Christian variety of anarchism. Thoroughly details anarchism in action. I'll mention the Spanish anarchist revolution because it was a pivotal moment in modern history for society at large and anarchism. Makes reference to Orwell's Homage to Catalonia, which is a harrowing account of Orwell's first hand experience with the civil war and anarchist movement. You can really learn when the powers that be don't like something, Stalinists, Fascists and the West all agreed that the anarchist revolution had to be crushed and that's what happened. It's sad because the anarchist revolution was based on 50 years of organizing, planning and community building which our current society lacks and was crushed by huge imperialist powers. However there are still some remnants of anarchism in Spain today, such as the thriving worker co-operative, Mondragon. Details how in Russia and Ukraine the anarchists were crushed by Lenin and how the anarchists really DID want to "give all the power to the Soviets" unlike the authoritarian communists. Details anarchism in Latin America. The movement is mostly limited in scope due to the huge amount of colonial repression faced in the continent, Marshall and I believe that Latin America is ripe for the voice of anarchism to be heard. Demanding the Impossible: A History of Anarchism - Peter Marshall - Google Books

No other book on anarchism covers so much so incisively. In this updated edition, a new epilogue examines the most recent developments, including "post-anarchism" and "anarcho-primitivism" as well as the anarchist contribution to the peace, green and Global Justice movements. Demanding the Impossible is essential reading for anyone wishing to understand what anarchists stand for and what they have achieved. It will also appeal to those who want to discover how anarchism offers an inspiring and original body of ideas and practices which is more relevant than ever in the twenty-first century. Peter Marshall is a philosopher, historian, biographer, travel writer and poet. He has written fifteen highly acclaimed books which are being translated into fourteen different languages. He has written articles and reviews for many national newspapers and journals. Click here for one- page information sheet on this product. Cart Contents. Recent Posts. Price: 0. Add To Wishlist. Overview Tell a Friend. Send Message. Search icon An illustration of a magnifying glass. User icon An illustration of a person's head and chest. Sign up Log in. Web icon An illustration of a computer application window Wayback Machine Texts icon An illustration of an open book. Books Video icon An illustration of two cells of a film strip. Video Audio icon An illustration of an audio speaker. Audio Software icon An illustration of a 3. Software Images icon An illustration of two photographs. No other book on anarchism covers so much so incisively. In this updated edition, a new epilogue examines the most recent developments, including 'post-anarchism' and 'anarcho-primitivism' as well as the anarchist contribution to the peace, green and 'Global Justice' movements. Demanding the Impossible is essential reading for anyone wishing to understand what anarchists stand for and what they have achieved. It will also appeal to those who want to discover how anarchism offers an inspiring and original body of ideas and practices which is more relevant than ever in the twenty-first century. Bibliografische Informationen. Marshall Fontana , - Seiten 1 Rezension A fascinating and comprehensive history, 'Demanding the Impossible' is a challenging and thought-provoking exploration of anarchist ideas and actions from ancient times to the present day.

Demanding the Impossible - Wikipedia

Peter Marshall is a philosopher, historian, biographer, travel writer and poet. He has written fifteen highly acclaimed books which are being translated into fourteen different languages. He has written articles and reviews for many national newspapers and journals. Click here for one- page information sheet on this product. Cart Contents. Recent Posts. Price: 0. Add To Wishlist. Overview Tell a Friend. Send Message. Anarchism Books Combo Pack. A fantastic combo pack of anarchist philosophies, conversations, history and reference not to be missed! Peter Marshall Navigating the broad "river of anarchy," from Taoism to Situationism, from anarcho-syndicalists to anarcha-feminists, this volume is an authoritative and lively study of a widely misunderstood subject. What Is Anarchism? Donald Rooum This book is an introduction to the development of anarchist thought, useful not only to propagandists and proselytizers of anarchism but also to teachers and students, and to all who want to uncover the basic core of anarchism. Editors: Raymond Craib and Barry Maxwell A collection of essays on the questions of geographical and political peripheries in anarchist theory. Voices of the Paris Commune. Editor: Mitchell Abidor Voices of the Paris Commune presents the stories of those who lived through and participated in the Commune in the spring of Clark and Camille Martin A comprehensive introduction to the thought of this anarchist geographer and political theorist analyzing his sweeping historical and theoretical synthesis. Talking Anarchy. Colin Ward and David Goodway Talking Anarchy is a discussion of the ups and downs of the anarchist movement during the last century, including the many famous characters who were anarchists, or associated with the movement. George Katsiaficas Ten years in the making, this book provides a unique perspective on uprisings in nine Asian nations in the past five decades. My library Help Advanced Book Search. View eBook. Demanding the Impossible : A History of Anarchism. Peter Marshall. PM Press , M12 1 - pages. Selected pages Title Page. Table of Contents. Contents Anarchism in Theory. Forerunners of Anarchism. Great Libertarians. Classic Anarchist Thinkers. Anarchism in Action. Modern Anarchism. The Legacy of Anarchism. https://files8.webydo.com/9585769/UploadedFiles/784DC438-6013-597E-66D3-F828E1AD1526.pdf https://files8.webydo.com/9588303/UploadedFiles/65C04050-CCBA-2D5D-A15F-299843840B21.pdf https://static.s123-cdn-static.com/uploads/4645176/normal_6020246da4407.pdf https://files8.webydo.com/9592286/UploadedFiles/2AAF47B9-D932-B57B-06EB-EB754F28F622.pdf https://files8.webydo.com/9586295/UploadedFiles/DBC6A078-3698-7F74-6298-149C1C9B4CD7.pdf https://static.s123-cdn-static.com/uploads/4641234/normal_601ee623f2ce3.pdf