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ABC of Anarchism
Now & After: The ABC of Communist Anarchism is an introduction to the principles of anarchism & anarchist communism written by Alexander Berkman. First published in 1929 by Vanguard Press, after parts of it had appeared in Freie Arbeiter Stimme, Now & After has been reprinted many times, often under the title What Is Communist Anarchism? or What Is Anarchism?. Because of its presentation of anarchist philosophy in plain language Now & After has become one of the best-known introductions to anarchism in print. Historian Paul Avrich described Now & After as "a classic" & wrote that it was "the clearest exposition of communist anarchism."
The anarchist movement was under siege during the 1920s. The USA had deported hundreds of anarchists, including Berkman & Emma Goldman, in 1919. In the newly-created USSR, Russian anarchists were being arrested by the Cheka, imprisoned or executed. In Ukraine, an anarchist army led by Nestor Makhno had been defeated by the Red Army. Hundreds of Russian anarchists were fleeing to exile in Germany & France.
In an effort to revive the movement, the Jewish Anarchist Federation in New York asked Berkman in 1926 to write an introduction to anarchism intended for the general public. By presenting the principles of anarchism in plain language, the NY anarchists hoped that readers might be swayed to support the movement or, at a minimum, that the book might improve the image of anarchism in the public's eyes.
Berkman's work successfully explains anarchist philosophy in terms any reader can understand. The book's chapters are brief, and many of them begin with questions (e.g., "Is Anarchism Violence?", "Will Communist Anarchism Work?"). Berkman avoids the sort of jargon & technical language often used by political writers in favor of plain language. As he writes in the "Foreword": "Anarchist books, with few exceptions, are not accessible to the understanding of the average reader. It is the common failing of most works dealing with social questions that they are written on the assumption that the reader is already familiar to a considerable extent with the subject, which is generally not the case at all. As a result there are very few books treating of social problems in a sufficiently simple & intelligible manner. For the above reason I consider a restatement of the Anarchist position very much needed at this time—a restatement in the plainest & clearest terms which can be understood by every one. That is, an ABC of Anarchism."
In 1929, Now & After was published by Vanguard Press in NY. In 1937, a year after Berkman's death, a second edition was published with a preface by Emma Goldman. A British edition was published in 1942 by Freedom Press in London. Since then, the book has been reprinted many times.
The anarchist movement was under siege during the 1920s. The USA had deported hundreds of anarchists, including Berkman & Emma Goldman, in 1919. In the newly-created USSR, Russian anarchists were being arrested by the Cheka, imprisoned or executed. In Ukraine, an anarchist army led by Nestor Makhno had been defeated by the Red Army. Hundreds of Russian anarchists were fleeing to exile in Germany & France.
In an effort to revive the movement, the Jewish Anarchist Federation in New York asked Berkman in 1926 to write an introduction to anarchism intended for the general public. By presenting the principles of anarchism in plain language, the NY anarchists hoped that readers might be swayed to support the movement or, at a minimum, that the book might improve the image of anarchism in the public's eyes.
Berkman's work successfully explains anarchist philosophy in terms any reader can understand. The book's chapters are brief, and many of them begin with questions (e.g., "Is Anarchism Violence?", "Will Communist Anarchism Work?"). Berkman avoids the sort of jargon & technical language often used by political writers in favor of plain language. As he writes in the "Foreword": "Anarchist books, with few exceptions, are not accessible to the understanding of the average reader. It is the common failing of most works dealing with social questions that they are written on the assumption that the reader is already familiar to a considerable extent with the subject, which is generally not the case at all. As a result there are very few books treating of social problems in a sufficiently simple & intelligible manner. For the above reason I consider a restatement of the Anarchist position very much needed at this time—a restatement in the plainest & clearest terms which can be understood by every one. That is, an ABC of Anarchism."
In 1929, Now & After was published by Vanguard Press in NY. In 1937, a year after Berkman's death, a second edition was published with a preface by Emma Goldman. A British edition was published in 1942 by Freedom Press in London. Since then, the book has been reprinted many times.
147 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1929
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About the author
Alexander Berkman
70 books107 followersAlexander Berkman was an anarchist known for his political activism and writing. He was a leading member of the anarchist movement in the early 20th century.
Berkman was born in Vilna in the Russian Empire (present-day Vilnius, Lithuania) and emigrated to the United States in 1888. He lived in New York City, where he became involved in the anarchist movement. He was the lover and lifelong friend of anarchist Emma Goldman. In 1892, Alexander Berkman tried to assassinate Henry Clay Frick for his role in violently suppressing the Homestead Steel Strike for which he served 14 years in prison. His experience in prison was the basis for his first book, Prison Memoirs of an Anarchist.
After his release from prison, Berkman served as editor of Goldman's anarchist journal, Mother Earth, and he established his own journal, The Blast. In 1917, Berkman and Goldman were sentenced to two years in jail for conspiracy against the newly instated draft. After their release from prison, they were arrested—along with hundreds of others—and deported to Russia. Initially supportive of that country's Bolshevik revolution, Berkman soon voiced his opposition to the Soviet's use of terror after seizing power and their repression of fellow revolutionaries. In 1925, he published a book about his experiences, The Bolshevik Myth.
While living in France, Berkman continued his work in support of the anarchist movement, producing the classic exposition of anarchist principles, Now and After: The ABC of Communist Anarchism. Suffering from ill health, Berkman committed suicide in 1936.
More: http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/...
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/goldman/...
http://www.nndb.com/people/137/000165...
Berkman was born in Vilna in the Russian Empire (present-day Vilnius, Lithuania) and emigrated to the United States in 1888. He lived in New York City, where he became involved in the anarchist movement. He was the lover and lifelong friend of anarchist Emma Goldman. In 1892, Alexander Berkman tried to assassinate Henry Clay Frick for his role in violently suppressing the Homestead Steel Strike for which he served 14 years in prison. His experience in prison was the basis for his first book, Prison Memoirs of an Anarchist.
After his release from prison, Berkman served as editor of Goldman's anarchist journal, Mother Earth, and he established his own journal, The Blast. In 1917, Berkman and Goldman were sentenced to two years in jail for conspiracy against the newly instated draft. After their release from prison, they were arrested—along with hundreds of others—and deported to Russia. Initially supportive of that country's Bolshevik revolution, Berkman soon voiced his opposition to the Soviet's use of terror after seizing power and their repression of fellow revolutionaries. In 1925, he published a book about his experiences, The Bolshevik Myth.
While living in France, Berkman continued his work in support of the anarchist movement, producing the classic exposition of anarchist principles, Now and After: The ABC of Communist Anarchism. Suffering from ill health, Berkman committed suicide in 1936.
More: http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/...
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/goldman/...
http://www.nndb.com/people/137/000165...
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 153 reviews
October 25, 2020
Back in the sixties, Chicago's Lincoln Park was an interesting neighborhood. The International headquarters of the Industrial Workers of the World was there above something I recall as "The Armenian-American Soup Kitchen." So was DePaul University and the Chicago Theological Seminary--the reason the restaurant on the corner of Fullerton and Halsted was called the "Seminary." Down Halsted there was a used bookstore, The Guild, filled with middle-aged communists with whom I used to argue and from which I bought my first book by C.G. Jung. Further down and just left on Armitage was the best bookstore of them all: The Solidarity Bookshop, a nineteenth century stoplight in the front window, always on, red forever.
Solidarity was such an anarchist institution that I often "worked" there. In other words, whoever was working there was quite comfortable to have a sixteen year old take over the shop while he or she went down the street for a bite at the local walk-up greasy spoon. There wasn't much business. There wasn't even a cash register--or maybe there was, an ancient one that didn't work. I believe we kept the money, such as it was, in a cigar box. In any case, I had ample opportunity to browse whether or not "on duty."
Gosh, it was wonderful, the ideal model of a bookstore. Old, woody, dusty, but organized, yes, organized: Calabrian labour, IWW, Coordinadora, Spanish Civil War, Socialism, Anarcho-Syndicalism, et cetera.
My first purchase was Berkman's "The ABC of Anarchism". I think the guy in jeans and blue workshirt who seemed to be managing the store suggested it because I didn't know what I was doing. I just wanted to know what anarchism was as a political philosophy as distinct from communism and socialism and impressive-sounding syndicalism. His advice was good. Berkman's essay is clear and understandable, a good start for teenagers in pursuit of a better world.
The store is gone now. So is the Guild. So is the IWW. So is the soup kitchen. So even is the Chicago Theological Seminary. The Yuppies moved in, replacing the Brown Berets and the Panthers, laying a townhouse foundation in what used to be Chicago's own Peoples' Park. Ugh!
Solidarity was such an anarchist institution that I often "worked" there. In other words, whoever was working there was quite comfortable to have a sixteen year old take over the shop while he or she went down the street for a bite at the local walk-up greasy spoon. There wasn't much business. There wasn't even a cash register--or maybe there was, an ancient one that didn't work. I believe we kept the money, such as it was, in a cigar box. In any case, I had ample opportunity to browse whether or not "on duty."
Gosh, it was wonderful, the ideal model of a bookstore. Old, woody, dusty, but organized, yes, organized: Calabrian labour, IWW, Coordinadora, Spanish Civil War, Socialism, Anarcho-Syndicalism, et cetera.
My first purchase was Berkman's "The ABC of Anarchism". I think the guy in jeans and blue workshirt who seemed to be managing the store suggested it because I didn't know what I was doing. I just wanted to know what anarchism was as a political philosophy as distinct from communism and socialism and impressive-sounding syndicalism. His advice was good. Berkman's essay is clear and understandable, a good start for teenagers in pursuit of a better world.
The store is gone now. So is the Guild. So is the IWW. So is the soup kitchen. So even is the Chicago Theological Seminary. The Yuppies moved in, replacing the Brown Berets and the Panthers, laying a townhouse foundation in what used to be Chicago's own Peoples' Park. Ugh!
January 30, 2016
Required reading, right? Volume 1 of "Working Classics Series," for example. One of the strengths of this book is meant to be its simple language and clear argumentation. At first, I felt like it was talking down to me, but the further I got into it, the more I liked it, as Berkman builds his argument.
I was a little disappointed with the bits about violence. Berkman shot Frick... and failed to kill him. Later, it is suspected, he was involved with some kind of bomb workshop that exploded. So maybe he's not the right guy to try and distance the movement from its violent reputation. On the other hand, he'd matured by the time he wrote this, the environment had changed and he's thinking differently about violence. It would have been even worse if he'd ignored the subject. I think he should have written some more about it, though. His argument here seems to boil down to "They are a lot more violent than we are." It seems like he didn't expect his own violent actions to spark the revolution, it was more like, Frick was being all gangsta and Berkman was like, he needs to get got. The bits in Emma Goldman's autobiography about Berkman vs. Frick are more thoughtful.
This book gets really good at the end, though, and the chapter about what kinds of labor unions we need to make a social revolution was great. A great deal of Berkman's vision of an anarchist society sounds like The Conquest of Bread-lite, but I like that.
This was written after the tragedy of Bolshevism, and Berkman uses the Russian Revolution as an example a lot, what they did right, what they did wrong. He has some other books that apparently get deeper into that, like his book on the Kronstadt Rebellion. That stuff was interesting, too, because usually, you get the liberal version, where everything between February 1917 and July was good, and then July to October was not so good, and then after October its all bad, but Berkman is more nuanced, without being sympathetic to the dictators. Allow me to quote from the conclusion to this book: "Force and suppression, persecution, revenge, and terror have characterized all revolutions in the past and have thereby defeated their original aims. The time has come to try new methods, new ways."
I was a little disappointed with the bits about violence. Berkman shot Frick... and failed to kill him. Later, it is suspected, he was involved with some kind of bomb workshop that exploded. So maybe he's not the right guy to try and distance the movement from its violent reputation. On the other hand, he'd matured by the time he wrote this, the environment had changed and he's thinking differently about violence. It would have been even worse if he'd ignored the subject. I think he should have written some more about it, though. His argument here seems to boil down to "They are a lot more violent than we are." It seems like he didn't expect his own violent actions to spark the revolution, it was more like, Frick was being all gangsta and Berkman was like, he needs to get got. The bits in Emma Goldman's autobiography about Berkman vs. Frick are more thoughtful.
This book gets really good at the end, though, and the chapter about what kinds of labor unions we need to make a social revolution was great. A great deal of Berkman's vision of an anarchist society sounds like The Conquest of Bread-lite, but I like that.
This was written after the tragedy of Bolshevism, and Berkman uses the Russian Revolution as an example a lot, what they did right, what they did wrong. He has some other books that apparently get deeper into that, like his book on the Kronstadt Rebellion. That stuff was interesting, too, because usually, you get the liberal version, where everything between February 1917 and July was good, and then July to October was not so good, and then after October its all bad, but Berkman is more nuanced, without being sympathetic to the dictators. Allow me to quote from the conclusion to this book: "Force and suppression, persecution, revenge, and terror have characterized all revolutions in the past and have thereby defeated their original aims. The time has come to try new methods, new ways."
May 14, 2019
«درمان شر و بینظمی، اختیار بیشتر است، نه سرکوب.»
January 21, 2010
No better book on Anarchism. It's written with language anyone can understand, and after reading many people say, "Huh, I'm an anarchist."
Forget that the term Anarchism has been demonized in the U.S. for the last century and pick up this book to find out what it is and if you're one.
Forget that the term Anarchism has been demonized in the U.S. for the last century and pick up this book to find out what it is and if you're one.
March 27, 2015
Very good overview of Communism, Anarchism, their relations, divisions (internal and external), and simple explanations for our history as a class conflict. Still very applicable today, and not difficult to read (compared to other radicals) despite being nearly one hundred years old.
But, I have a problem with his use of certain words, such as 'barbarians' and 'civilized'. It's so...authoritarian, and I wish he knew that. There are likely other words and comments, too, which I don't remember.
As the book goes on, he gets a bit ranty and repetitive. Yes, I understand now that the general strike is the vital first stage of the social revolution today. Yes, I understand the workers must throw out their bosses and managers as the first stage of revolution. Yes, I get it. Each paragraph eventually (by p. 140) becomes an irritant. Production and distribution, production and distribution, immediate reshaping of society, but only after a long period of gestation of the masses' radicalism to boiling point. Okay! Fine. The repetition going nowhere eventually led me to skipping the sections of the last 20 pages, about production and so on.
Nonetheless, I would encourage any readers curious about the topic to read this early on in their self-education.
But, I have a problem with his use of certain words, such as 'barbarians' and 'civilized'. It's so...authoritarian, and I wish he knew that. There are likely other words and comments, too, which I don't remember.
As the book goes on, he gets a bit ranty and repetitive. Yes, I understand now that the general strike is the vital first stage of the social revolution today. Yes, I understand the workers must throw out their bosses and managers as the first stage of revolution. Yes, I get it. Each paragraph eventually (by p. 140) becomes an irritant. Production and distribution, production and distribution, immediate reshaping of society, but only after a long period of gestation of the masses' radicalism to boiling point. Okay! Fine. The repetition going nowhere eventually led me to skipping the sections of the last 20 pages, about production and so on.
Nonetheless, I would encourage any readers curious about the topic to read this early on in their self-education.
May 28, 2020
I decided to read this book because I was a little bit curious about anarchism. In my ignorance about the theoretical foundations of this political ideology I believed it would be more dear to me than communism, which steps on individuality and tries to hide it under the rug.
In the movie Le Jeune Karl Marx I remember seeing Marx mocking the anarchists, particularly Proudhon, who was one of the victims of Marx's many bullying acts in his book "The Poverty of Philosophy" which criticizes "The Philosophy of Poverty". Reading this book on Anarchism I can only imagine how ruthless to it Marx could have been, given how full of logical fallacies and poor arguments it is.
Berkman explains that this is a book for the general public, not well versed in anarchist theory, but in fact it is written for someone not well versed in anything, because the language he uses is appropriate for a 5 year old and the explanations as condescending and simplistic. In the first chapters the author lays down an economic theory of labor exploitation in the style of Marx and how capitalism is a crime. He explains how the whole society is built such that you do not question your surroundings. School, for example, is an institution that does not want you to learn anything, except that capitalism is good. He does not elaborate enough, leaving the reader the opportunity to publish a future magnum opus where it is proven that Darwin's evolution theory, Differential calculus and quantum mechanics are taught so that one does not understand that capitalism is a prison. He also tries to make several statements about Economics which are plainly wrong and contradictory in themselves, which I liked because it made me see that after all Economics is not a hopeless science and there are things we actually know. For a criticism of capitalism that actually makes you think your time would be better spent with the Frankfurt School.
There were some parts that seemed less bad like when he criticizes some particularities of the Russian Revolution, but throughout, he makes point that you cannot help but question. For example, he says that statistics have proven that 3 hours a day of work would be enough to keep humanity fed and comfortable. I have no idea whether this is true, but I do know that "statistics" hardly proves anything, and that this kind of calculation could not be done through statistics, only through mathematics and with a series of assumptions. Reminds me of that story in which Euler tricked Diderot with a false mathematical proof that God existed, fortunately I do know more statistics than Diderot knew mathematics. A lot of questions seem to be left out or simply dismissed by "people would not do this", when he tries to argue that after the revolution everyone would live in harmony.
Overall, this text made me understand better Marx's attitudes towards anarchists and what he called utopian socialists, because this is very unconvincing indeed. Perhaps, and I do believe that, there are better texts, which do not seem written by a highschooler.
I did get suspicious from the beginning when he argues that sociologists, philosophers and psychologists have been wasting their time writing tomes about what people want when it is plainly obvious. I have always found alarming seeing people who did not appreciate and awed at the complexity and diversity of human experience. Beware when someone says that it is very simple to say what all humans want and then a ten words sentence follows.
In the movie Le Jeune Karl Marx I remember seeing Marx mocking the anarchists, particularly Proudhon, who was one of the victims of Marx's many bullying acts in his book "The Poverty of Philosophy" which criticizes "The Philosophy of Poverty". Reading this book on Anarchism I can only imagine how ruthless to it Marx could have been, given how full of logical fallacies and poor arguments it is.
Berkman explains that this is a book for the general public, not well versed in anarchist theory, but in fact it is written for someone not well versed in anything, because the language he uses is appropriate for a 5 year old and the explanations as condescending and simplistic. In the first chapters the author lays down an economic theory of labor exploitation in the style of Marx and how capitalism is a crime. He explains how the whole society is built such that you do not question your surroundings. School, for example, is an institution that does not want you to learn anything, except that capitalism is good. He does not elaborate enough, leaving the reader the opportunity to publish a future magnum opus where it is proven that Darwin's evolution theory, Differential calculus and quantum mechanics are taught so that one does not understand that capitalism is a prison. He also tries to make several statements about Economics which are plainly wrong and contradictory in themselves, which I liked because it made me see that after all Economics is not a hopeless science and there are things we actually know. For a criticism of capitalism that actually makes you think your time would be better spent with the Frankfurt School.
There were some parts that seemed less bad like when he criticizes some particularities of the Russian Revolution, but throughout, he makes point that you cannot help but question. For example, he says that statistics have proven that 3 hours a day of work would be enough to keep humanity fed and comfortable. I have no idea whether this is true, but I do know that "statistics" hardly proves anything, and that this kind of calculation could not be done through statistics, only through mathematics and with a series of assumptions. Reminds me of that story in which Euler tricked Diderot with a false mathematical proof that God existed, fortunately I do know more statistics than Diderot knew mathematics. A lot of questions seem to be left out or simply dismissed by "people would not do this", when he tries to argue that after the revolution everyone would live in harmony.
Overall, this text made me understand better Marx's attitudes towards anarchists and what he called utopian socialists, because this is very unconvincing indeed. Perhaps, and I do believe that, there are better texts, which do not seem written by a highschooler.
I did get suspicious from the beginning when he argues that sociologists, philosophers and psychologists have been wasting their time writing tomes about what people want when it is plainly obvious. I have always found alarming seeing people who did not appreciate and awed at the complexity and diversity of human experience. Beware when someone says that it is very simple to say what all humans want and then a ten words sentence follows.
May 29, 2018
Di sini Alexander Berkman menangkis anggapan miring tentang anarkisme. Wajar, selama ini anarkisme sering diasosiasikan dengan tindakan kekerasan, pengrusakan, bom molotov, dan tindakan-tindakan kriminal lainnya. Padahal itu namanya kriminalisme atau vandalisme, bukan anarkisme. Terutama media massa sering menggunakan kata anarkis sebagai padanan untuk aksi yang awut-awutan, bar-bar, tidak teratur, uwuh, dan biang kerusuhan. Opini media massa itu kemudian dianggap sebagai kebenaran oleh masyarakat awam.
Anarkisme sebenarnya adalah pandangan politik dan filosofis yang menolak adanya pemerintah. Sebab, pemerintah merupakan biang keladi penindasan dan selalu membela kepentingan kelas borjuis. Seorang anarkis mengganggap masyarakat mampu mengatur dirinya sendiri dengan mengandalkan akal pikiran. Anarkisme menolak birokrasi dan lembaga serupa yang memiliki sifat memaksa atau melanggengkan ideologi kelas borjuis yang menindas.
Selain menangkis anggapan miring tentang anarkisme, Berkman juga menjelaskan ragam anarkisme. Macam-macam anarkisme; anarko-sindikalis, anarko-pasifis, anarko-feminis, anarko-kapitalis, anarko-individualis, dan lain-lain.
Revolusi atau konfrontasi langsung tidak dapat dihindari dan mau-tidak-mau merupakan jalan satu-satunya menghilangkan kelas yang menindas itu. Jika serangan atau konfrontasi langsung terjadi, biasanya menyasar simbol-simbol kelas-kelas penindas.
"We'll become civilised only when the struggle of classes is ended."
Sementara industri tetap ada dengan model industri kecil dan rumahan. Prinsip-prinsip kolektif dan menguntungkan antar pekerja menjadi yang utama. Ya, tentu saja tidak ada pemimpin atau bos di situ.
Apakah anarkisme dapat terwujud? Dalam skala mikro, misalnya komunitas seni, pecinta alam, suporter bola, dan lain-lain, prinsip-prinsip anarkisme dapat diwujudkan. Saya masih kesulitan membayangkan negara hilang. Akan membutuhkan waktu yang sangat lama dan upaya yang besar untuk itu, misalnya membangun jaringan solidaritas antaranarkis seluruh dunia. Atau sesekali memanfaatkan peluang alias momentum gonjang-ganjing pemerintahan.
Buku ini sangat tepat menjadi pengantar untuk memahami anarkisme. Salam antifasis!
Anarkisme sebenarnya adalah pandangan politik dan filosofis yang menolak adanya pemerintah. Sebab, pemerintah merupakan biang keladi penindasan dan selalu membela kepentingan kelas borjuis. Seorang anarkis mengganggap masyarakat mampu mengatur dirinya sendiri dengan mengandalkan akal pikiran. Anarkisme menolak birokrasi dan lembaga serupa yang memiliki sifat memaksa atau melanggengkan ideologi kelas borjuis yang menindas.
Selain menangkis anggapan miring tentang anarkisme, Berkman juga menjelaskan ragam anarkisme. Macam-macam anarkisme; anarko-sindikalis, anarko-pasifis, anarko-feminis, anarko-kapitalis, anarko-individualis, dan lain-lain.
Revolusi atau konfrontasi langsung tidak dapat dihindari dan mau-tidak-mau merupakan jalan satu-satunya menghilangkan kelas yang menindas itu. Jika serangan atau konfrontasi langsung terjadi, biasanya menyasar simbol-simbol kelas-kelas penindas.
"We'll become civilised only when the struggle of classes is ended."
Sementara industri tetap ada dengan model industri kecil dan rumahan. Prinsip-prinsip kolektif dan menguntungkan antar pekerja menjadi yang utama. Ya, tentu saja tidak ada pemimpin atau bos di situ.
Apakah anarkisme dapat terwujud? Dalam skala mikro, misalnya komunitas seni, pecinta alam, suporter bola, dan lain-lain, prinsip-prinsip anarkisme dapat diwujudkan. Saya masih kesulitan membayangkan negara hilang. Akan membutuhkan waktu yang sangat lama dan upaya yang besar untuk itu, misalnya membangun jaringan solidaritas antaranarkis seluruh dunia. Atau sesekali memanfaatkan peluang alias momentum gonjang-ganjing pemerintahan.
Buku ini sangat tepat menjadi pengantar untuk memahami anarkisme. Salam antifasis!
May 15, 2016
Sencillamente maravilloso. Se esté de acuerdo o no con el ideario anarquista, obra imprescindible para entenderlo. Alexander Berkman recoge una síntesis de las ideas fundamentales del movimiento, desmiente todos los falsos mitos construidos alrededor del anarquismo, hace una crítica a los recientes sucesos de la Revolución Rusa y el bolchevismo (dada la época en que se escribió el libro -1928-), así como, lo que es aún más importante, una explicación sobre cómo lograr la revolución social y qué hacer a continuación.
May 1, 2012
I picked up this little volume when I was a volunteer for "Underground Books" on 9th Street in New York City. I recall one of my anarchist comrades saying she wasn't too impressed with it, that the "translation" was bad (although it was written in English, but she may have meant that Berkman's English wasn't good enough). I thought it was good enough as an introduction, and I still do, although I admit that Berkman does not break a lot of new ground or engage with radical theory on a very high level. This book is clearly written for a less-educated audience, with the intention of persuading workers to support a movement for greater freedom rather than the state-centralist working class movements of the traditional Left. In that sense it still seems to me an adequate, if not ground-breaking, piece, which deserves consideration by political activists today. It will appeal to undergraduate-level students of political science as being neither overly long nor especially difficult, although they will have no problem detecting the holes in Berkman's argument.
Looking at it again today, it seems to me that the most interesting part is actually the biographical sketch of Berkman by Peter E. Newell. This focuses largely on Berkman's disillusionment with the Russian Revolution after the Kronstadt rebellion, but doesn't offer as much on his attempt to assassinate H.C. Frick, except for a familiar excerpt from Emma Goldman's autobiography. There are of course much more exhaustive and well-researched introductions to Berkman's life, but this may also be useful for a newcomer to anarchist history.
Looking at it again today, it seems to me that the most interesting part is actually the biographical sketch of Berkman by Peter E. Newell. This focuses largely on Berkman's disillusionment with the Russian Revolution after the Kronstadt rebellion, but doesn't offer as much on his attempt to assassinate H.C. Frick, except for a familiar excerpt from Emma Goldman's autobiography. There are of course much more exhaustive and well-researched introductions to Berkman's life, but this may also be useful for a newcomer to anarchist history.
April 12, 2018
Although a bit outdated, this was a very enjoyable read.
September 10, 2025
I can be an opinionated fellow, and I can get very loud about politics. Strangely enough, current politics have become so utterly abysmal that people have actually started listening to my rants. Faced with the specter of being taken seriously, I have decided to re-read the foundational underpinnings of my professed political beliefs. It would not do to discover that over the years I misremembered or embellished things.
So, you've read Kropotkin and Goldman, and you think to yourself, "Their vision of Anarcho-communism sounds well and good, but how do you put it into practice." Berkman has at least some of the answers. Adjustments need to be made in regard to the changes in technology and social dynamics, education will have to come before action, and change will need to be incremental. However, Berkman remains a good place to start when you want to move from theory to practice.
So, you've read Kropotkin and Goldman, and you think to yourself, "Their vision of Anarcho-communism sounds well and good, but how do you put it into practice." Berkman has at least some of the answers. Adjustments need to be made in regard to the changes in technology and social dynamics, education will have to come before action, and change will need to be incremental. However, Berkman remains a good place to start when you want to move from theory to practice.
March 15, 2024
Outdated! Obviamente.
Sin embargo, encontré fascinante su perspectiva sobre la Revolución Rusa y el ejército rojo de los bolcheviques porque amo esa época histórica.
Aunque el autor intenta describir los conceptos de manera clara, a menudo se desvía hacia la propaganda comunista, lo que puede resultar repetitivo y aburrido. A pesar de esto, Berkman tiene un excelente dominio del anarquismo y logra explicarlo de manera accesible incluso para aquellos que no están familiarizados con el tema.
Sin embargo, encontré fascinante su perspectiva sobre la Revolución Rusa y el ejército rojo de los bolcheviques porque amo esa época histórica.
Aunque el autor intenta describir los conceptos de manera clara, a menudo se desvía hacia la propaganda comunista, lo que puede resultar repetitivo y aburrido. A pesar de esto, Berkman tiene un excelente dominio del anarquismo y logra explicarlo de manera accesible incluso para aquellos que no están familiarizados con el tema.
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July 25, 2020Great propaganda. It has definitely softened my attitude toward Anarchism. The writing is really simple and effective. Wouldn't take much of anyone's time to engage with it.
January 25, 2008
What should be a middle schooler's primer on the basic tenets of 20thc Anarchism is actually this book which would prove unreadable to cynical hipsters or bootstrap dems/reps. Berkman's is a world of people who live even grander than the promises of liberalism.
Berkman just lays it out, simply, all the creative bountiful joys we should be enjoying on planet earth *because we are alive.* Then he tells ya how to get there from here. Not because we toil, but because creation and production and fruition are our birthright and achievable through equitable social structures like those found in Anarchism.
Berkman just lays it out, simply, all the creative bountiful joys we should be enjoying on planet earth *because we are alive.* Then he tells ya how to get there from here. Not because we toil, but because creation and production and fruition are our birthright and achievable through equitable social structures like those found in Anarchism.
December 12, 2010
Alexander Berkman was a well known anarchist in the later 19th and early part of the 20th century. He took part in a number of events, including an effort to assassinate a leading industrialist. After years in prison, he continued his activism, editing publications for instance.
This book is an example of his political views. He was hardly the most cerebral and talented of the writers in this movement. But he does address many key questions in his own voice, such as "Is anarchism violence?"; "What is anarchism?"; "Is anarchy possible?"; and so on.
If you want a brief introduction to Berkman's views, this will suffice nicely. . . .
This book is an example of his political views. He was hardly the most cerebral and talented of the writers in this movement. But he does address many key questions in his own voice, such as "Is anarchism violence?"; "What is anarchism?"; "Is anarchy possible?"; and so on.
If you want a brief introduction to Berkman's views, this will suffice nicely. . . .
August 21, 2017
Buku saki yang sangat praktis dibawa kemana-mana sangat cocok untuk bacaan para pemula. Disini dikupas habis semua pertanyaan yang menuju ketidakmungkinan dalam penerapan anarkisme. Dan tentunya merupakan sudut pandang baru terhadap saya, bahwa anarkisme tidak seanarkis yg saya pikirkan sebelumnya. disini juga dibahas pendapat tentang marxisme melalui sudut pandang anarkis.
March 5, 2022
Absolutely amazing and inspiring book on Anarchism. Probably THE best book to learn what Anarchism is and isn't, what its goals are and what we should and should NOT do if you want a society of liberty, justice, and equality.
August 19, 2012
THIS IS THE BEST!
January 27, 2022
Babies first book on anarchy.
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August 10, 2022Me compré este libro en la londinense Whitechapel, concretamente en una tienda anarcarquista algo escondida y que me gustó bastante. Fue inevitable llevarme el libro a casa, ya que tenía (y tengo) interés en formarme más en el anarquismo y me llamó la atención el título.
El libro es el ABC del anarquismo, pero no especifica en el título que el enfoque es hacia el anarco-comunista. Me sorprende haberme comprado un libro sin quererlo de un enfoque político que quería conocer más a fondo (podía haberme fijado más antes de comprarlo también jeje). A pesar de que está escrito en 1929, creo que las claves e ideas del anarquismo y del comunismo no envejecen. Bueno, lo he notado en el uso de 'men' para referirse a personas por parte de Berkman... qué le vamos a pedir a un señor a principios/mediados del siglo XX.
Para tener una visión general, este ensayo se divide en diversas partes:
1. Introduction
2. Is Anarchism Violence?
3. What is Anarchism?
4. Is anarchism Possible?
5. Will Communist Anarchism Work?
6. Non-Communit Anarchists
7. Why Revolution?
8. The idea is the Thing
9. Preparation
10. Organisation of Labour for the Social Revolution
11. Principles And Practice
12. Consumption and Exchange
13. Production
14. Defence of the Revolution
Espero que la próxima vez que me lea el libro pueda escribir las frases importantes (¡he marcado demasiadas páginas para poder hacer un buen resumen!) pero decir que el mensaje general del libro es que el anarquismo (anarco-comunismo) busca la libertad de la sociedad de forma cooperativa a través del fin del estado y la descentralización económica -- y el comienzo de los intercambios --de una manera convincente pero pacífica. Habla de una revolución que necesita la acción directa de les trabajadores de la clase media (tanto trabajadores manuales como aquellos de oficios 'intelectuales) con manifestaciones y huelgas efectivas, pudiendo ser la violencia un modo de defensa. Veo la lógica de juntar ambas ideas políticas pero, a nivel personal, necesitaría leer más para saber si realmente mi posicionamento es el anarco-comunista. Además, pone de ejemplos de diversos países con un enfoque histórico.
Me ha gustado el libro porque es completo y he podido quedarme con ideas clave. Sin embargo, es un error por mi parte leérmelo como si fuese una revista. Se me ha hecho bola y creo que he desaprovechado el momento para realmente aprender, no os voy a mentir. Creo que este tipo de libros están más hechos para leerlos con calma, coger apuntes, subrayar e interiorizar conocimientos.
¿Lo recomendaría para gente que le interese esta ideología política? Sí, pero quizás no es un libro para empezar desde cero cerísimo.
El libro es el ABC del anarquismo, pero no especifica en el título que el enfoque es hacia el anarco-comunista. Me sorprende haberme comprado un libro sin quererlo de un enfoque político que quería conocer más a fondo (podía haberme fijado más antes de comprarlo también jeje). A pesar de que está escrito en 1929, creo que las claves e ideas del anarquismo y del comunismo no envejecen. Bueno, lo he notado en el uso de 'men' para referirse a personas por parte de Berkman... qué le vamos a pedir a un señor a principios/mediados del siglo XX.
Para tener una visión general, este ensayo se divide en diversas partes:
1. Introduction
2. Is Anarchism Violence?
3. What is Anarchism?
4. Is anarchism Possible?
5. Will Communist Anarchism Work?
6. Non-Communit Anarchists
7. Why Revolution?
8. The idea is the Thing
9. Preparation
10. Organisation of Labour for the Social Revolution
11. Principles And Practice
12. Consumption and Exchange
13. Production
14. Defence of the Revolution
Espero que la próxima vez que me lea el libro pueda escribir las frases importantes (¡he marcado demasiadas páginas para poder hacer un buen resumen!) pero decir que el mensaje general del libro es que el anarquismo (anarco-comunismo) busca la libertad de la sociedad de forma cooperativa a través del fin del estado y la descentralización económica -- y el comienzo de los intercambios --de una manera convincente pero pacífica. Habla de una revolución que necesita la acción directa de les trabajadores de la clase media (tanto trabajadores manuales como aquellos de oficios 'intelectuales) con manifestaciones y huelgas efectivas, pudiendo ser la violencia un modo de defensa. Veo la lógica de juntar ambas ideas políticas pero, a nivel personal, necesitaría leer más para saber si realmente mi posicionamento es el anarco-comunista. Además, pone de ejemplos de diversos países con un enfoque histórico.
Me ha gustado el libro porque es completo y he podido quedarme con ideas clave. Sin embargo, es un error por mi parte leérmelo como si fuese una revista. Se me ha hecho bola y creo que he desaprovechado el momento para realmente aprender, no os voy a mentir. Creo que este tipo de libros están más hechos para leerlos con calma, coger apuntes, subrayar e interiorizar conocimientos.
¿Lo recomendaría para gente que le interese esta ideología política? Sí, pero quizás no es un libro para empezar desde cero cerísimo.
January 8, 2025
Anarchists are proving to be the most lucid political thinkers - this has to be the most convincing, plain English you can find on the problems of our current economic and political system, and why the abolition of monopolies of force and capital to allow all people equal liberty is the solution.
Yes it sounds woo woo, but the thing is, we all live like anarchists every day. We're constantly working in small communities and figuring out shit amongst ourselves using the basic psychological principles of fairness and cooperation to resist free-riders (read Kahneman for more on this). I just made a film with a small community of people and can safely say that 80% of people work their asses off strictly on principle, and the rest can be dealt with via social tools like shame and outcasting rather than the violence our society currently employs.
If you had any interest in alternative ways of political thinking, it doesn't get any clearer or more reasonable than this.
Yes it sounds woo woo, but the thing is, we all live like anarchists every day. We're constantly working in small communities and figuring out shit amongst ourselves using the basic psychological principles of fairness and cooperation to resist free-riders (read Kahneman for more on this). I just made a film with a small community of people and can safely say that 80% of people work their asses off strictly on principle, and the rest can be dealt with via social tools like shame and outcasting rather than the violence our society currently employs.
If you had any interest in alternative ways of political thinking, it doesn't get any clearer or more reasonable than this.
August 12, 2020
He makes a cool stand against capitalists, the church, the state, socialists and bolsheviks. It touches concepts like blind submission to authority, the law, the working hours and the slavery of wages. While also hinting to what path lies ahead to the social revolution and how it should be done.
It does not give you all the anwsers but it asks the right questions and it's very easy to read.
Sometimes it's funny because the book is like a conversation between you and Berkman about Anarchism and Communism. It does not delve deep into some important details, but then it would not be an ABC .
I think this resumes anarchism in a funny nutshell:
"It is true that if we could follow the precepts of the Nazarene this would be a different world to live in. There would then be no murder and no war; no cheating and lying and profit-making. There would be neither slave nor master, and we should all live like brothers, in peace and harmony. There would be neither poor nor rich, neither crime nor prison, but that would not be what the church wants. It would be what the Anarchists want."
It does not give you all the anwsers but it asks the right questions and it's very easy to read.
Sometimes it's funny because the book is like a conversation between you and Berkman about Anarchism and Communism. It does not delve deep into some important details, but then it would not be an ABC .
I think this resumes anarchism in a funny nutshell:
"It is true that if we could follow the precepts of the Nazarene this would be a different world to live in. There would then be no murder and no war; no cheating and lying and profit-making. There would be neither slave nor master, and we should all live like brothers, in peace and harmony. There would be neither poor nor rich, neither crime nor prison, but that would not be what the church wants. It would be what the Anarchists want."
March 18, 2022
Berkman pše pitko i razumljivo, problemi o kojima govore i danas nam vise nad glavom, na još većoj skali. Berkman predvidja Drugi Svetski rat deset godina pre nego što će se dogoditi, a sve što zamera boljševičkoj revoluciji (a zamera mnogo toga) tek će se pokazati u punoj meri decenijama nakon njegove smrti. Ipak, rešenja koja nudi u knjizi deluju prilično naivno u kontekstu globalnog kapitalizma današnjice. Mada ekstremna nejednakost poziva da se više nego ikad ugledamo na ljudske vrednosti koje Aleksandar ističe, akcije neophodne da dostignemo ciljeve o kojima piše značajno su složenije i moraju premostiti naizgled nepremostivo.
Da sam pročito ovu knjigu pre 10 godina sigurno bi bilo 5 zvezdica.
Da sam pročito ovu knjigu pre 10 godina sigurno bi bilo 5 zvezdica.
October 17, 2024
خیلی فلسفی نیست یا حداقل چیزی که من ازش توقع داشتم نبود. از یک جایی به بعد داره راه و روش به شما نشون می ده که چگونه به ایده آل آنارشیسم کمونیسمی برسید و خب بی فایده ست.
June 4, 2019
A good introduction to some important principles. Berkman sadly did himself in a matter of weeks before those principles were implemented in the Spanish revolution
January 21, 2020
Estoy empezando a leerlo. No dice nada que un neófito no sepa ya, pero es la forma o lenguaje en como Berkman lo expone, este sería quizás el dogma o formato de ideal en que se contempló el comunismo libertario en la España de 1936-38, brutalmente difamado, demonizado y atacado por incluso, las fuerzas aliadas mediante su no intervención militar debido a sus intereses capitalistas y el consiguiente debilitamiento a escala internacional. Es sabido que el capitalismo internacional entraba en decadencia en el cambio de siglo y que el anarquismo empezó a calar en la sociedad. Este libro es sencillo per conmovedor por su prosa fácil, estamos ante un manual de la vida que deberían leer incluso en la educación secundaria obligatoria.
Quien desee conocer la diferencia entre absolutismo, anarquismo, capitalismo, comunismo y variantes o diferencias según como se analiza o desde el punto de vista. Es un paseo virtual por la estúpida sociedad de la realidad y por la utópica vida que persigue el ser humano en sus principios, pero que corrompe tanto al tirano como al oprimido, el tirano se enriquece del oprimido y el oprimido tiene que recurrir a la ilegalidad, el hurto y la violencia para adquirir igualdad. El tirano dispone del beneplácito del gobierno coactivo y el opresor esta desamparado por unas leyes que más que para gobernar son para oprimir al pobre-eclavo al proletario.
Veamos pues!! Salud, anarquia y abajo la monarquía.
Quien desee conocer la diferencia entre absolutismo, anarquismo, capitalismo, comunismo y variantes o diferencias según como se analiza o desde el punto de vista. Es un paseo virtual por la estúpida sociedad de la realidad y por la utópica vida que persigue el ser humano en sus principios, pero que corrompe tanto al tirano como al oprimido, el tirano se enriquece del oprimido y el oprimido tiene que recurrir a la ilegalidad, el hurto y la violencia para adquirir igualdad. El tirano dispone del beneplácito del gobierno coactivo y el opresor esta desamparado por unas leyes que más que para gobernar son para oprimir al pobre-eclavo al proletario.
Veamos pues!! Salud, anarquia y abajo la monarquía.
August 6, 2017
Alexander Berkman adalah seorang tokoh anarkisme terkemuka yang wara-wiri mengobarkan revolusi di Amerika Serikat dan Rusia pada awal abad 20. Dalam buku ini, beliau mencoba meluruskan pandangan mengenai anarkisme secara umum dan mendoktrin pembacanya dalam sebuah utopia tanpa kuasa. Buku ini penuh mimpi, tetapi sangat jujur dan teknis. Tidak hanya gagasan, Berkman juga menyajikan metode-metode dan instrumen-instrumen yang telah diuji oleh pengalaman lapangan dalam mencapai revolusi anarkis.
Buku ini menarik dibaca untuk menambah pengetahuan, terutama untuk menangani kesalahpahaman radikal mengenai anarkisme. Berhati-hatilah, buku ini adalah jenis buku yang kalau sembarangan ditunjukan di depan aparat, Anda bisa diciduk.
ABC Anarkisme yang saya baca merupakan terbitan Berdikari Book. Buku ini dicetak dengan ukuran yang relatif kecil, mudah dibawa ke mana-mana; betul-betul sebuah panduan bagi pemula.
Buku ini menarik dibaca untuk menambah pengetahuan, terutama untuk menangani kesalahpahaman radikal mengenai anarkisme. Berhati-hatilah, buku ini adalah jenis buku yang kalau sembarangan ditunjukan di depan aparat, Anda bisa diciduk.
ABC Anarkisme yang saya baca merupakan terbitan Berdikari Book. Buku ini dicetak dengan ukuran yang relatif kecil, mudah dibawa ke mana-mana; betul-betul sebuah panduan bagi pemula.
May 31, 2020
Finally done this one. I might have started it and then forgotten about it for a few weeks.
I'm still pretty new to leftist literature! So I'm not sure if my star rating will remain the same as I read more. This one, for the most part, was more of a checklist that solidified a lot of things I believed already. It did provide a few new considerations for to mull over, but ... mostly a checklist.
There was definitely a condescending tone in it. It's one thing to put down theory in layman's terms, but it's another thing entirely to talk down to the layman. This one definitely crossed that line.
I'm still pretty new to leftist literature! So I'm not sure if my star rating will remain the same as I read more. This one, for the most part, was more of a checklist that solidified a lot of things I believed already. It did provide a few new considerations for to mull over, but ... mostly a checklist.
There was definitely a condescending tone in it. It's one thing to put down theory in layman's terms, but it's another thing entirely to talk down to the layman. This one definitely crossed that line.
December 15, 2011
I was already turned away from capitalism when I read this book and it did a really good job of showing how under current conditions socialism would never take over however it didn't really paint a feasible picture of what an ideal, functioning anarchist world would look like. This is a great book for socialists and capitolists to use to question their own way of thinking. For the anarchist this is a great book for building your arguments and getting a better foundation of what anarchy can be.
March 16, 2008
Not the most fleshed-out description of anarchist thought, but a good intro. Tends to get lost in utopian speculation. The real wealth here is in Berkman's deconstruction of western values and the assumptions that underlie our conceptions of civilization- e.g, I especially enjoyed his perspective on war.
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