Table Of ContentAnarchism PO53022A (Spring 2013)
Prof. Carl Levy
Department of Politics
Goldsmiths College
University of London
WT 708
Office Hours Mondays 2-4
[email protected]
This unit focuses on the history, politics and ideology of anarchism chiefly from its
origins in the nineteenth century to 1939. There will be a discussion of anarchism in
the post-1945 period but the main aim of the unit is to trace the origins and
development of anarchist ideology (Godwin, Stirner, Proudhon, Bakunin, Kropotkin,
Malatesta, Goldman, etc.) and the associated social and labour movements in Europe
and the Americas (from the Paris Commune of 1871 to the Spanish Civil War, 1936-
1939, and the Haymarket Riot of Chicago of 1886 and the Mexican Revolution of
1910-1920 to the Russian Revolution and Civil War of 1917-1921). We will
investigate anarcho-collectivism, anarcho- communism, anarcho-individualism and
anarcho-syndicalism. The relationship between anarchist movements and terrorism
will also be discussed, but so too will the relationship of art and education to
anarchism. But these will also be a substantial time devoted to anarchist-type
movements and ideas, which developed throughout the world before 1800 and as well
a discussion of the ‘ism’, anarchism, its reception and interchange with thinkers, ideas
and movements in Asia and Africa.
Course Aims
To examine the concepts and values which are central to anarchist thought.
To consider the place of anarchism in key historical events.
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Learning Outcomes
Be able to understand critically the nature of anarchism.
Understand the place of anarchism in a broad historical context.
Requirements: Students will submit one research essay of 4000 to 5000 words. You
may use the topic questions for any given week for your essay.
Please note plagiarism is not permitted: by now you know the consequences.
For the deadline for the submission of the essay please consult your student handbook
or the departmental office.
These are important overviews of and engagements with anarchism.
1. M. A. Bammyeh, Anarchy as Order. The History and Future of Civic
Humanity, Lanham, 2009.
2. M. Buber, Paths in Utopia, London, 1949.
3. P. Elzbacher, Anarchism: Exponents of Anarchist Philosophy, London, 1960.
4. A. Carter, The Political Theory of Anarchism, London, 1971.
5. F. Dupuis-Déri, ‘Anarchy in Political Philosophy’, Anarchist Studies, 13, 1,
2005, pp. 8-22.
6. B.Franks and M. Wilson, Anarchism and Moral Philosophy, Basingstoke,
2010.
7. D. Goodway (ed.), For Anarchism. History, Theory, Practice, London, 1989.
8. Daniel Guerin, Anarchism from Theory to Practice, New York, Monthly
Review Press, 1970.
9. Daniel Guerin, No Gods, No Masters, AK Press, 2006.
10. J. Heckert and R. Cleminson (eds.), Anarchism & Sexuality. Ethics,
Relationships and Power, Routledge, 2011.
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11. James Joll, The Anarchists, 2nd Ed., London, Methuen, 1979.
12. Ruth Kinna, A Beginner’s Guide. Anarchism, Oxford, OneWorld, 2005.
13. Carl Levy, “Anarchism”, Encarta Online Encyclopaedia 2007: easiest way to
access this is to google: Carl Levy anarchism Encarta.
14. Peter Marshall, Demanding the Impossible. A History of Anarchism, London,
Fontana, second edition , London, Harper Perennial, 2008.
15. David Miller, Anarchism, London, 1984.
16. M. Nettlau, A Short History of the Anarchist Movement, Freedom, 1996.
17. A. Prichard (ed.) of special issue of Millennium, 39,2, 2010) on anarchism and
international relations.
18. A. Prichard, ‘Deepening anarchism: international relations and the anarchist
ideal’, Anarchist Studies, 18, 2, 2010, pp. 29-57.
19. A. Ritter, Anarchism: A Theoretical Analysis, Cambridge University Press,
1980.
20. S. M. Sheehan, Anarchism, London, 2003.
21. R. Sonn, Anarchism, New York, 1992.
22. J. Suissa, Anarchism and Education. A Philosophical Perspective, London
2006/Oakland, 2010.
23. C. Ward, Anarchism: A Very Short Introduction, Oxford University Press,
2004.
24. G. Woodcock, Anarchism, Penguin, Harmondsworth, 1986.
25. G. Woodcock (ed.), Anarchism and Anarchy, Hamilton, Ontario, 1997.
I suggest you buy Kinna and Marshall.
Useful Anthologies
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1.R. Graham (ed.), Anarchism. A Documentary History of Libertarian Ideas. Volume
One: From Anarchy to Anarchism (300 EC to 1939), Montréal, 2005;
Volume Two: The Emergence of the New Anarchism (1939-1977),
Montréal 2007; Volume Three: The New Anarchism (1974-2008).
2. I. L. Horowitz (ed.), The Anarchists, New York, 1964.
3. L. Krimmerman and L. Parry (eds.), Patterns of Anarchy, New York, 1966.
4. M. S. Shatz, The Essential Works of Anarchism, New York, 1971.
5. G. Woodcock, (ed.), The Anarchist Reader, Penguin, 1986
6. R. Amster (ed.), Contemporary Anarchist Studies: An Introductory Survey of
Anarchy in the Academy, London, 2009.
7. N. J. Jun and S. Wahl (eds.), New Perspectives on Anarchism, Lanham, 2010.
If you want an anthology of anarchist writings I suggest you buy Graham’s three
volumes or Guerin or get a second-hand copy of Woodcock (I believe it is out of
print). And then there is Iain McKay’s An Aarchist FAQ( Volume One), AK
Press is, 2008. This a very useful dictionary of anarchism (one of a kind).
For the broader Utopian Tradition see
L. Davis and R. Kinna (eds.), Anarchism and Utopianism, Manchester University
Press, 2009 and :
1. R. Amster, ‘Chasing Rainbows: Utopian Pragmatics and the Search for
Anarchist Communities’, Anarchist Studies, 9, 1, 2001, pp. 29-52.
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2. M. L. Berneri, Journey Through Utopia, Freedom Press, 1982.
3. G. Claeys (ed.), The Cambridge Companion to Utopian Literature,
Cambridge, 2010.
4. G. Claeys, Searching for Utopia. The History of an Idea, London, 2011.
5. R. Creagh, ‘Nineteenth Century American Utopias’, Anarchist Studies, 6, 1,
1998, pp. 72-75.
6. B. Goodwin and K. Taylor, The Politics of Utopia: A Study in Theory and
Practice, London, 1982.
7. D. Hardy, Alternative Communities in Nineteenth Century England, London,
1979.
8. R. Kinna, ‘Roads to Utopia’, Anarchist Studies, 8, 1, 2000, pp. 53-55.
9. K. Kumar, Utopia and Anti-Utopia in Modern Times, London, 1987.
10. F. E. Manual and R. P. Manual, Utopian Thought in the Western World, New
York, 1979.
11. L. Mumford, The Story of Utopia, London, 1922.
12. W. Morris, News from Nowhere, Cambridge University Press, 1995.
13. L. T. Sargent, Utopianism. A Very Short Introduction, Oxford, 2010.
14. E. O. Wright, Envisioning Real Utopias, London, 2010.
Websites
There are some extremely useful websites. Ronald Creagh has created a multi-lingual
site called R.A Forum (Research on Anarchism). It takes a while to get the hang of it
but just google RA Forum (Research on Anarchism) (www.raforum.info etc) and then
go to the site map. There you will found a wide variety of approaches to academic
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references (ideology, biography, history, philosophy, current events etc. by country
and theme). Pitzer College also has a very good website:
www.dwardmac.pitzer.edu/Anarchist_Archives. You can download texts by
Chomsky, Goldman, Kropotkin, Malatesta and Reclus. Then there is the Kate
Sharpley Library for anarchist history and research: www.katesharpleylibrary.net.
You should also check the website of the International Institute of Social History in
Amsterdam, which has a tremendous archive (built around the former personal
archive of the ‘Herodotus of anarchism’ (Max Nettlau)) and the IISH’s journal,
International Journal of Social History. Google IISH, International Institute of Social
History and International Journal of Social History. The other site to visit is the
anarchist studies network sponsored by the Anarchist Studies Group of the Political
Studies Association (the professional association of those who teach politics in the
UK, who my follow Yanks call ‘political scientists’. asn@lists_anarchist
studies_network.org.uk. Ask to join up and you will be connected to a lively
discussion group.
Three journals are essential: Anarchist Studies, Social Anarchism, and Anarchy: A
Journal Desire Armed (google them).
The website of Freedom Press and the Freedom Bookshop is also very useful. The
journal Freedom was founded in London by Kropotkin in 1886. It is still publishing.
For an East End tour and a wonderful sense of history, a visit to the bookshop is
worthwhile (which is very well stocked): 84b Whitechapel High Street, London EC
7QX. It’s down Angel Alley and there is a lovely mural on the side of the wall.
Seminars:
Topics will be the theme questions and other issues discussed by the groups.
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Essay questions are the theme questions posed in each session as listed below.
1 and 2. Introduction: The Origins of the Ideology of Anarchism: The Historical
Context
To what extent is anarchism a product of the European Age of Ideologies, the rise of
the modern nation-state and the emergence of industrialism?
During these two weeks you should read one of the introductory texts such as Ward,
2004(pp. 1-13); Marshall, 1993 (pp. 1-142), Woodcock (many editions), chapter 2
(‘The Family Tree’); Joll (1979), pp. 3-44; Kinna, 2005, pp. 1-43.
I briefly discuss the relationship between anarchism as ideology and anti-statist
traditions before 1800 and throughout the world in C. Levy, ‘Anarchism,
Internationalism and Nationalism in Europe, 1860-1939’, Australian Journal of
Politics and History, Vol. 50, No.3, 2004, pp. 330-342 (Access via my pages
on Dept. of Politics website) , ‘Anarchism’, Encarta, 2007, ‘Social Histories of
Anarchism’, Journal for the Study of Radicalism, Vol. 4, No. 2, 2010, pp. 11-44
(Access via my pages on Dept. of Politics website and ‘Anarchism and
Cosmopolitanism’, Journal of Political Ideologies, Vol. 16, No. 3, 2011. Pp. 265-278
(Access to article via my page on Dept. of Politics, website). Patricia Crone’s article
on Muslim anarchism is a very good example of an attempt to place the 19th concept
of anarchism within early Islamic society, see, Patricia Crone, ‘Ninth-Century Muslim
Anarchists’, Past and Present, no.169, May 2000, pp. 3-28. This article for pre-1800
examples of anarchism outside of Europe (also see H. Barclay, ‘Islam, Muslim
Societies and Anarchy’, Anarchist Studies, 10. 2, 2003, pp. 105-118. And in this vein
you might also read for the Chinese case: J.A.Rapp, ‘Daoism and Anarchism
Reconsidered’, Anarchist Studies, 6, 2, 1998, pp. 123-51 as well as Normam Cohn’s
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classic study of ‘anarchist’ and millenarian Christian groups in medieval Europe, N.
Cohn, The Pursuit of the Millennium: Revolutionary Millenarians and Mystical
Anarchist in the Middle Ages’, London, 1993), but also see, H. Jürgen-Goertz, The
Anabaptists, London, 1996.. And for a contextual and textual analysis of the
relationship between anarchism and Christianity see, A. Christoyannopoulos (ed.),
Religious Anarchism: New Perspectives, Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, 2009 and A.
Christoyannopoulos, Christian Anarchism: A Political Commentary on the Gospel,
Exeter, 2010. The Greek origins of the word ‘anarchy’ are discussed by Uri Gordon in
his research note found in Anarchist Studies, 14, 1, 2006, pp. 84-91. I think these are
interesting works but they raise the question of anachronism. In this respect Harold
Barclay’s study of situations where human societies have dispensed with government
and the State is a more fruitful way of approaching the problem of anarchism before
anarchism (H. Barclay, People without Government: An Anthropology of Anarchy,
London 2006 and his Culture and Anarchy, Freedom Press, 1997 and The State,
Freedom Press, 2003. And you might also read Brian Morris’s ‘Anthropology and
Anarchism’, Anarchy: A Journal of Desire Armed, 45, 1998.). Also see P. Clastres,
Society Against the State, Boston, 1989 and D. Graeber, Fragmeents of an Anarchist
Anthropology, Chicago, 2004 but most importantly, James Scott’s two works, Seeing
Like a State: How Certain Schemes to Improve the Human Condition Have Failed,
New Haven, 1998 and J. C. Scott, The Art of Not Being Governed: An Anarchist
History of Upland Southeast Asia, New Haven, 2009. The ideological and historical
context in which anarchism was constructed is discussed masterfully in George
Crowder’s, Classical Anarchism. The Political Thought of Godwin, Proudhon,
Bakunin and Kropotkin, Oxford, 1991(also see, D. Morland, Demanding the
Impossible. Human Nature and Politics in Nineteenth-Century Social Anarchism,
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London, 1997). And for a critique of Crowder see, R. Kinna, ‘The Anarchist Canon’,
Anarchist Studies 5, 1, 1997, pp. 67-71. Also see the very important contribution by
Paul McLaughlin, Anarchism and Authority: A Philosophical Introduction to
Classical Anarchism, Aldershot. 2007 and S. Clark, Living without Domination,
Aldershot, 2007. For the political culture of anarchism see, S. Gemie, ‘Counter-
community: an aspect of anarchist political culture’, Journal of Contemporary
History, 29, 1994, pp. 349-367 and S. Gemie, ‘Historians, Anarchism and Political
Culture’, Anarchism Studies, 6, 2, 1998, pp. 153-159. And for the relationship of
anarchism to the legacies of the French Revolution see: C. Alexander McKindley,
Illegitimate Children of the Enlightenment. Anarchists and the French Revolution,
1880-1914, Peter Lang, 2008. And for the relationship between the pirate republics of
the Spanish Main and anarchism, see the intriguing, C. Land, ‘Flying the Black Flag:
Revolt, Revolution, and the Social Organisation of Piracy in the ‘Golden Age’’,
Management & Organisational History, 2, 2, 2007, pp. 169-1992 and more jaundiced
view of the libertarian potential of pirates is found in G. Kuhn, Life under the Jolly
Roger. Reflections on the Golden Age of Piracy, Oakland, 2010.
3. Godwin and Stirner
1. What were the connections between William Godwin’s political philosophy and
English radicalism?
2. In what ways did Stirner affect the histories of anarchism and Marxism?
Core Reading: Marshall, Chapter 15, ‘William Godwin: The Lover of Order’, or
Woodcock, Chapter 3, ‘The Man of Reason’.
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And, Marshall, Chapter 16,’Max Stirner: The Conscious Egotist’, and Woodcock,
Chapter 4, ‘The Egoist’ or S. Newman (ed.), Max Stirner, Basingstoke, 2011.
Other Readings
Godwin and the British background:
1. L. Call, ‘Locke and Anarchism: The Issue of Consent’, Anarchist Studies, 6, 1,
1998, pp. 3-20.
2. S. Clark, ‘Anarchism and the Myth of the Primitive in Godwin and
Kropoktin’, Studies in Social and Political Thought, 15, 2008, pp. 6- 25.
3. J.P. Clarke, The Philosophical Anarchism of William Godwin, 1980.
4. J.P. Clarke, ‘The Other Godwin’, Anarchist Studies, 12, 2, 2004, pp. 174-180’.
5. D. Goodway, ‘Muggletonian Marxism’, Anarchist Studies, 6, 2, 1998, pp. 164-
168.
6. D. Locke, The Fantasy of Reason; the Life and Thought of William Godwin,
1980.
7. P. Marshall, William Godwin, Yale UP, 1984.
8. P. Marshall, William Blake: Visionary Anarchist, Freedom Press, 1986.
9. P. Nursey-Bray, ‘Autonomy and Community: William Godwin and the
Anarchist Project’, Anarchist Studies, 4, 2, 1996, p. 97-114.
10. M. Philp, Godwin’s Political Justice, London, 1986.
11. The Anarchist Writings of William Godwin, P. Marshall (ed.), Freedom Press,
1986.
12. The Political Writings of William Godwin, London 1993
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Description:P. Elzbacher, Anarchism: Exponents of Anarchist Philosophy, London, 1960. 4 you might also read for the Chinese case: J.A.Rapp, 'Daoism and
