How to Be a Dissident

by Gal Beckerman, Unknown Author

An invigorating guide to fighting back—part philosophy, part history, and part manual for living with integrity in an age of conformity and authoritarian drift

How do we push back in a world where political leaders wield fear and intimidation? Where digital technology dehumanizes and flattens us? We need role models, and in this engaging book, acclaimed writer Gal Beckerman goes looking for them. Drawing on the stories of dissidents from around the globe and across time, from Socrates to Ai Weiwei, and thinkers like Hannah Arendt and Iris Murdoch, Beckerman reveals the defining characteristics these extraordinary figures share, a set of attributes and practices for anyone navigating the pressures of modern tyranny.

Structured around ten qualities—among them, Be Pessimistic, Be Funny, Be Reckless, and Be Immortal—this illuminating, surprising book blends intellectual history, biography, and cultural criticism. It charts a dissident’s journey from the solitary moment of recognizing the truth, through the risks of speaking it, to the legacy that can outlast a life. What makes dissidents tick? And how might we change when we encounter them?

Urgent and inspiring, Beckerman’s book shows that dissidence is a human capacity we can all cultivate, a refusal to betray one’s inner voice, no matter the cost. In a polarized America and a world sliding toward authoritarianism, we need dissidents—not only the jailed and martyred, but also those of us who face small daily compromises of conscience. How to Be a Dissident lights the way.

Genres: Nonfiction, Philosophy, Politics, History, Audiobook, Activism, Government

Paperback

About the author

Gal Beckerman is a writer and editor at The New York Times Book Review and a regular contributor to the New Republic and the Wall Street Journal. He has a PhD in media studies from Columbia University and is the author of the award-winning When They Come for Us, We'll Be Gone, which was named a best book of the year by the New Yorker and the Washington Post. He lives in Brooklyn with his wife and two daughters.

Reviews

[David Biello · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perhaps the actual title is how to be a better human by examining the example of dissidents. A deeply humane, beautifully written meditation on the shared struggle of life and building a better world.

[Ally · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pessimism is not fatalism. Fatalism is the belief that things will always necessarily be worse. Pessimism is the belief that things will probably get worse. Within that ‘probably,’ it opens up space for action.

I found a Substack immediately after finishing that takes Beckerman’s stance on how optimism can undermine urgency and enable passivity/cause us to wait for someone else to solve world problems. Recommend.

[Renny808 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow. This was inspiring, heartbreaking, worrisome, and yet hopeful. It considers what lessons we can take away from dissident thinkers and activists through human history. I didn't know many of their names before reading this book, but most were successful or at least influential in working against injustice and authoritarianism in their time.

[Mark · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you to Goodreads Giveaways and to author Gal Beckerman for providing me a softcover copy of this largely philosophical but somewhat historical analysis of ten attributes that are often shared by dissidents regardless of gender, time period, or geographical location. Because the term “dissident” is most often associated with individuals who stood against communist authoritarian rule in the Soviet dominated portion of Europe, I was interested in reading this book as I studied a good deal of history and politics of the former Soviet Union and Eastern Europe from the end of World War II until the fall of the Berlin Wall in November 1989 as part of my minors in college.

When describing the ten attributes of a dissident, Beckerman often provided several historical examples of the actions of some famous (but mostly unknown) dissidents that illustrate a particular attribute. I enjoyed examples involving Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn (a Russian author who often comes to mind as an original dissident in the Soviet Union), Vaclav Havel (a Czech playwright and the first democratically elected president of Czechoslovakia), Milan Kundera (a Czech author best known for his book “The Unbearable Lightness of Being”), the Solidarity movement (a non-state labor union and general anti-authoritarian social movement in Poland during the communist period) and its leader Lech Walesa (the first democratically elected president of Poland post-communism), and other writers and thinkers who challenged the Soviet system. These examples, along with those from the Civil Rights Movement in the United States and mothers looking for their lost children and raising questions for the military government in the late 1970s in Argentina during the rule of Argentine President Jorge Rafael Videla (so elegantly portrayed in the 1985 film “The Official Story,” which won an Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film) were much more accessible and understandable to me than what felt like long philosophical discussions that filled much of this book, which may be much more appealing to readers who enjoy exploring abstract concepts in great depth. The historical examples used in this book occasionally showed heroic action in the face of grim times but mostly illustrated that dissidents were ordinary people who wanted to live a normal life so they said “No” to conformity required by authoritarian regimes and refused to passively live their lives. Movie and book references throughout this work, some of which I added to my “to be watched” or “to be read" lists, provided additional context to explain often nebulous concepts.

In addition to the opaqueness of philosophical discussions, the author often introduced his own ideological bent to distract from analysis of the ten attributes. Statements about the United States (portrayed as on the brink of authoritarian rule for the first time in its history without considering the political climate just prior to and during the Civil War, the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II, the Jim Crow South, and the Covid lockdowns that restricted free assembly, freedom to practice religion, freedom to due own’s trade, and freedom of movement) and religious people (portrayed as simpletons who blindly follow rules without thinking about mortality/how those rules may impact others and that religion is a primary source of global repression) may turn off certain readers. However, the ten attributes described in this book do not provide a guide just for those who are fighting for political or economic freedom in some third world country. Rather, those attributes may also be adopted by average people combating daily conformity in their lives, whether it be peer pressure during adolescence or groupthink at work.

[elena j. · Rating 5 out of 5]

How to Be a Dissident is an intellectually rich and remarkably timely examination of what it means to maintain integrity in an age increasingly shaped by conformity, polarization, and authoritarian pressure. Gal Beckerman blends history, philosophy, biography, and cultural criticism into a work that feels both urgent and deeply reflective.

What makes the book especially compelling is its focus on dissidence not as a rare act reserved for heroic figures, but as a human capacity available to anyone willing to confront uncomfortable truths. Rather than treating dissidents as distant historical icons, Beckerman explores the habits, virtues, and moral choices that define them, making their lessons immediately relevant to contemporary readers.

The structure of the book is one of its greatest strengths. Organizing the narrative around qualities such as pessimism, humor, recklessness, and immortality allows Beckerman to move fluidly across centuries and cultures while building a cohesive framework for understanding resistance, courage, and moral independence. Each chapter offers fresh insights while contributing to a larger argument about personal responsibility and ethical conviction.

Another notable strength is the breadth of voices represented throughout the book. Drawing from philosophers, artists, political dissidents, and historical figures, Beckerman creates a conversation that feels expansive and nuanced rather than ideological. Readers are encouraged to wrestle with difficult questions rather than being handed simple answers.

Importantly, the book succeeds because it balances intellectual rigor with accessibility. While engaging deeply with philosophical ideas and historical examples, the writing remains engaging and relevant to the everyday dilemmas people face when confronting social pressure, institutional authority, and questions of conscience.

At its core, How to Be a Dissident is about moral courage, independent thought, truth-telling, and the willingness to remain faithful to one's convictions despite personal risk. Readers drawn to political philosophy, intellectual history, cultural criticism, leadership, ethics, and contemporary social issues will likely find the book both inspiring and challenging.

[Brian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rattling, and richly historical and personal. A timely read in the age of so many things to stand for and against.

[Kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

How to Be a Dissident is a book about philosophy, finding your moral compass, and ultimately a reminder of all the people who have been fighting fascism across the centuries.

It’s structured around ten principles, not unlike the eight limbs of yogic practice or the Ten Commandments, ideals and philosophies to live by. Each principle is brought to life through the stories of dissident artists, agitators, ordinary people, protesters, and philosophers. Beckerman writes about people you may recognize and many you may never have heard of.

With the world feeling so precarious right now, there is comfort in encountering stories of resistance spanning two thousand years. This book offers a way to sit with yourself and define your morals. As Beckerman writes “Dissidents are taking seriously, and applying great imagination, to the task of being human.”

Thank you to Crown Publishing and NetGalley for the eArc.

[Denise · Rating 5 out of 5]

This may be the best non-fiction book I will read this year. If it is not the best, it will undoubtably be the most important. The title could have been "How to live Authentically" or "How to Live Purposefully" or "Live your Values and Beliefs" or just "How to Be a Better Human", but his title is probably the best.

Beckerman has done an impressive job of fitting centuries of philosophy, political protests, religious beliefs, and activism into a book with less than 200 pages. The information in this little volume is so important and profound that I only read a chapter every few days so I could ponder what I had read and the concepts that were so elegantly presented. It is one of the few books that I actually went out to buy after starting it as a library copy. This is a book to reference again and again.

[Dylan Janson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Actual rating: 4.6/5

Stumbled upon this one at my Barnes & Noble and my curiosity carried me all the way through. Had no idea what to expect, and that turned out for the best. A sweeping examination of what it means to care about others, for others, and for causes beyond yourself. And it all starts with protecting and championing your own values in the world around you.

Will definitely be returning to select passages every now and then.

[Annie Ashbrook · Rating 4 out of 5]

A short read, and while I enjoyed the way the book formatted its chapters, there were times I felt this was a speed run of a history book. I liked the ways ideas were presented through the stories of each individual, but I do think this could have benefited from more clear calls to action or some kind of additional narrative to wrap up everything up. (Read for book club).

[Zach Church · Rating 3 out of 5]

A series of essays or long columns, some of which are very very good, more of which are 'fine,' and all of which really don't hang together. The 'Be Reckless' and 'Be Presumptuous' chapters are the strongest, and the ones that best illustrate what sets dissident's apart from ... i don't know, complainers?

But other chapters - 'Be Funny' and 'Be Human' - read more like sketches dressed up just enough to fit into the book.

Beckerman's analysis in later chapters, when he struggles to answer questions - and admits he is struggling - is worthwhile. You can see him working out live the same questions many dissidents must struggle with. Bust most of the chapters are missing this and become simple histories without it.

I don't usually harp on a single specific thing that bothered me in a book, but I will here. At one point, Beckerman scolds "liberal activists" for wanting to take down confederate monuments, likening this position to the Trump Administration's removal of the mention of slavery of NPS exhibits. He argues both result in history being "buried." And he further compares this to Tiananman Square. That's a huge reach, and a weird one, considering without monuments you can still read about the civil war in history books, on the internet, in museums, etc. etc. Just a weird spot to stand.

[Ally · Rating 5 out of 5]

I listened to this book (Gal, please, please, please narrate more things!) and will definitely purchase a physical copy. Dissidents are my comrades.

[Nicole Sherer · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book altered my worldview at a very intimate level. I will definitely be re-reading.

[Britn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Part philosophy, part history, part how-to. This piece is beautifully researched and written. Really enjoyed this quick read.

[Indra · Rating 4 out of 5]

How to Be a Dissident
by Gal Beckerman

Thank you to Crown Publishing for the gifted copy 💛

⭐ 4 stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐

This ended up being much more thoughtful and philosophical than I expected. Despite the title, it is not really a step-by-step “how to” guide. It feels more like a meditation on integrity, courage, resistance, and what it means to stay human in systems that pressure people toward silence and conformity.

What I appreciated most was how Beckerman strips away the myth of the dissident as some fearless superhero figure. The people discussed here are often anxious, isolated, flawed, funny, uncertain, and deeply human. The book argues that dissent is not usually one giant dramatic act, but a series of small choices not to betray yourself.

The structure around the ten qualities worked surprisingly well for me. “Be Pessimistic” especially stood out. The distinction between pessimism and fatalism felt important and oddly comforting in a difficult way. The book constantly pushes readers to sit with uncomfortable questions instead of avoiding them.

I also really liked the mix of philosophy, history, memoir-like reflection, and political analysis. From Socrates to Ai Weiwei to Hannah Arendt, the book creates this long thread of people wrestling with truth, power, fear, and morality across centuries.

What I Loved
• Thoughtful and deeply humane writing
• The focus on ordinary people making difficult choices
• Fascinating historical and philosophical connections
• Encourages self-reflection rather than easy answers

What Didn’t Fully Work for Me
• Less practical than the title suggests
• At times it felt more focused on individual morality than collective action
• Some sections became a little dense philosophically

Overall, How to Be a Dissident feels especially relevant right now. It is less about grand rebellion and more about protecting your ability to think honestly, question openly, and refuse to abandon your conscience even in small everyday moments. Quietly powerful and worth sitting with. 📚✨

[Aryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't really write reviews, but this book felt very different to the types of non-fiction I usually read, and I thought maybe I should try to say what I felt while reading this.

This isn’t really a “how to” book, despite the title. It’s not trying to teach you how to be brave. It’s trying to make you uncomfortable in the best way possible.

The core idea is simple but hits harder the more you sit with it. Dissidence doesn’t start with big, dramatic acts, but when the gap between what you believe and what you’re willing to say becomes too big to ignore.

What Beckerman does really well is strip away the mythology around dissidents. These aren’t heroic, larger-than-life figures. They’re anxious, inconsistent, sometimes funny, often alone. They hesitate. They’re normal. And they're all incredibly amazing. That’s what makes the book land. It forces you to realize that the difference isn’t some rare kind of courage, but a series of small decisions about when to stop going along with things you know are false.

The “qualities” structure (be pessimistic, be funny, be reckless, etc.) works better than it sounds. It ends up feeling less like a checklist and more like different ways of holding onto your sense of reality when it would be easier to let it slip.

If I had one critique, it’s that the book is very focused on the individual. It’s about that private moment of refusing to lie. That’s powerful, but it doesn’t fully answer what happens next or how that turns into collective change. Still, that feels almost intentional. The book isn’t about changing the world. It’s about whether you can live with yourself and how to be better about making uncomfortable choices and asking uncomfortable questions, even to yourself, in a world that allows avoidance of that and sometimes even punishes it. And that’s a much harder question than it sounds.

[Richard Thompson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't think that I'd ever sacrifice myself for an idea or an ideology. It's too abstract, and maybe I'd be wrong. Some of the greatest travesties in history have happened in the name of ideas. But to sacrifice myself for the good of other people - that's different, and I'd like to think that I'd have the courage to do that, if the stakes were high enough. When an important idea happens to be a good one, then I suppose it is a good thing to have people who can inspire us to follow its cause through their personal sacrifice, but I'd rather be the person who stays alive and works quietly behind the scenes to further the cause than the one who goes down in flames. If I'm ever caught in a hopeless situation from which there is no escape, I'd like to think that I could face it with courage, maybe even with a smile, but I'll never know unless it happens, and I will do everything I can to ensure that it doesn't.

So I don't know how I feel about the people profiled in this book. I was mostly not inspired to be like them, even the ones with admirable causes. I might be a follower, but probably not an emulator. I will look for other ways to express my dissidence.

[Madison ✨ (mad.lyreading) · Rating 4 out of 5]

How to Be a Dissident has a misleading title -- it does not tell you how you should be a dissident, but instead examines well known dissidents and what they did to fight for what they believe in. This book is not preachy, and is quite an inspiring book on philosophy. The world feels like more of a mess than ever before, and this book helped me to remember that "there is some good in this world, ..., and it's worth fighting for." It is also of note that the author recognizes that being a dissident in and of itself is not the point, as many horrendous figures in history were, themselves, dissidents. It's a thought provoking book, and will have you thinking about your relationship with your own morals. Highly recommend.

Thank you to Crown Publishing and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Jukka · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beckermanin edellinen kirja (The Quiet Before, 2022) teki minuun suuren vaikutuksen. Tämä oli vielä vaikuttavampi. Edellisessä tarkastelun kohteena olivat edelläkävijät, nyt katse kääntyy toisinajattelijoihin ja siihen, mitä opittavaa meillä voi olla heistä ja heidän rohkeudestaan.

Suomen kielessä sanalla "toisinajattelija" on vähän hassu kaiku. Sana dissidentti juuri on latinan verbissä dissidēre, joka tarkoittaa istumista eri paikoissa. Se on hieman aktiivisempi kuin pelkät ajatukset. Mutta... Beckermanille toisinajattelijoiden merkittävin ominaisuus on kuitenkin se, että he toimivat eivätkä jää pelkästään hautomaan valtaa ja järjestystä haastavia ajatuksiaan.

Tällaisia fiksuja kirjoja on ilo lukea. Tai siis kuunnella. Suositus.

[CM · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was really taken by this book because it put into words things I had pondered about for a long time concerning how people react when asked to conform to something that goes against their conscience with potentially serious consequences if they don’t. It examines various individuals, well known and not, who are ultimately compelled by their moral commitment to humanity to act accordingly despite demands for their conformity. Their stories are fascinating and inspiring. The author’s discussions and reflections throughout the book gave me much to think about, and I appreciated his guidance about living as an individual in the current moment.

[Alex Jackman · Rating 5 out of 5]

“… Start by thinking of dissidence differently, not as a distinct moment of action, not as a choice, but as a way of being.”

Beckerman introduces 10 qualities that he suggests define a dissident and explores them chapter by chapter. Be funny. Be watchful. Be reckless. Be human. Rooted in stories of dissidents throughout history, each concept is not only educational, but approachable, entertaining, and inspiring.

A quick, engaging read, this is one of those books that adds 10 more to your reading list — every page has a new person, concept, or quote to follow-up on. It’s a syllabus and a lifestyle guide, how to live a moral life in the face of authoritarianism.

[Audrey Trainor · Rating 5 out of 5]

The only flaw in this book is the title. I told a friend I was reading it and they said, "How depressing." For me, nothing was further from the truth. I felt so hopeful while reading it. It is a thoughtful and deep account that urges the reader to ask questions of themselves based on the always incredible (sometimes inspiring, sometimes messy sometimes repulsive) stories of resistance. The author breaks the book into sections that make heavy topic easier to digest. More than anything though, it is a nonjudgmental push for engaging with people to diminish human suffering. What the world needs now.

[Michael Evans · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't usually read non-fiction, but I am glad I made an exception for this book. This is a great primer for civil disobedience. The author really breaks down what a dissident must go through. While there is always a little romanticism in a book like this, I feel it dealt rather honestly with the cost of being a dissident. Beckerman seems to be passionate about speaking the truth. This book feels more like he is trying to start the discussion of social activism rather than simply rallying people to arms. I plan on passing this book around to a few friends so we can dissect the book.

[Paula Graham · Rating 2 out of 5]

The stories are interesting. The writing is good.
The book is just terribly out of touch. You can tell that the author lives in a bubble where everyone is hive minded.
There is also hyperbole like "The America I am writing from finds itself facing the threat of an authoritarian form of government for the first time in its history." Hmmm. I can think of 4 or 5 times, two before our government had even solidified. Our current problems date back to more distant problems. Not recognizing that is what leads to the extremism that divides us now. It also guarentees that the root of the problem will not be uprooted.
#Goodreadsgiveaways

[Bill Golden · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gal Beckerman's book is both encouraging and discouraging. He documents people who were ordinary and yet not so and extraordinary people who we could only hope to emulate. I struggled a bit with the concepts in the book because I am an engineer and not an incredibly literate person, but I appreciated the points that were made. I hope that I can at some point contribute a bit more to making the world a better place as so many dissidents have done before.

[Molly]

Quick, enlightening read. Though the philosophical discussions were a slog, I appreciated learning about dissidents throughout history. I was particularly excited to see the inclusion of Wangarĩ Maathai, though I do have to side-eye a bit at including Thoreau. The concept of hopeful pessimism was particularly interesting to me. While I didn't agree with everything, I did appreciate the opportunity to learn about Beckerman's perspectives.

[Conor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it. A heartening, thoughtful look not just at what it means to be a dissident and stand up against oppression of many stripes, but really at how to be a good person and nourish your interior life. Thought-provoking, inspiring examples from history that I loved learning about, including some figures that you think you know, but that Gal dissects.

[Susanne Sommer · Rating 5 out of 5]

incredible

An incredible book. I just finished and am about to start again from the beginning. It’s not a difficult book to read , and it’s not a long book, but is filled with stories about remarkable people, and encourages me to examine my own life more fully.

[Nathan Graham · Rating 5 out of 5]

“There are sacrifices and trade-offs. I need to weigh them and then act. What’s essential is not to abdicate that power…[to] act for its own sake, because it feels right. Because I can’t live with myself otherwise.”

[Zoë Snook · Rating 5 out of 5]

What really sold this book for me was the constant insistence by the author to allow the reader to form their own opinions on the facts and experiences that were being explained. So rarely do we see this in nonfiction. This was philosophy I felt compelled by