Let's Destroy Work, Let's Destroy the Economy

by Alfredo M. Bonanno

The old work ethic has disappeared along with the massive obsolete structures of capital which required a permanent army of producers, yet work still has far more implications than mere survival. Millions of people still compete for the privilege of turning up day after day, year after year, to surrender body and soul in exchange for a wage. The alternative: to encounter one’s real desires and create the means required to realise them, could present some surprises and lead to undreamed choices. A job, boring or arduous as it might be, is the easy way out. It gives structure to our day and puts order in our expectations, giving us just enough in our pockets to acquire instant sublimation and quell any sudden surge of hatred towards what is stealing our time and our lives. Translated by Jean Weir, this Elephant Editions classic is made available again.

Genres: Politics, Nonfiction, Anarchism

94 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2013

About the author

Alfredo Maria Bonanno is a main theorist of contemporary insurrectionary anarchism who wrote essays such as Armed Joy (for which he was imprisoned for 18 months by the Italian government), The Anarchist Tension and others. He is an editor of Anarchismo Editions and many other publications, only some of which have been translated into English. He has been involved in the anarchist movement for over thirty years.

Reviews

[ػᶈᶏϾӗ · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was an ok read. It had a few good passages but a lot of it was too technical, focused on broad trends about work and automation. It felt like a reactive analysis more than a call towards anything proactive, like the title suggested it would be. I was disappointed.