The Dispossessed: Karl Marx's Debates on Wood Theft and the Right of the Poor

by Daniel Bensaïd

Excavating Marx’s early writings to rethink the rights of the poor and the idea of the commons in an era of unprecedented privatization
  The politics of dispossession are everywhere. Troubling developments in intellectual property, genomics, and biotechnology are undermining established concepts of property, while land appropriation and ecological crises reconfigure basic institutions of ownership. In The Dispossessed , Daniel Bensaïd examines Karl Marx’s early writings to establish a new framework for addressing the rights of the poor, the idea of the commons, and private property as a social institution. In his series of articles from 1842–43 about Rhineland parliamentary debates over the privatization of public lands and criminalization of poverty under the rubric of the “theft of wood,” Marx identified broader anxieties about customary law, property rights, and capitalist efforts to privatize the commons. Bensaïd studies these writings to interrogate how dispossession continues to function today as a key modality of power. Brilliantly tacking between past and present, The Dispossessed discloses continuity and rupture in our relationships to property and, through that, to one another. In addition to Bensaïd’s prescient work of political philosophy, The Dispossessed includes new translations of Marx’s original “theft of wood” articles and an introductory essay by Robert Nichols that lucidly contextualizes the essays.

Genres: Nonfiction, History

176 pages, Paperback

First published September 20, 2013

About the author

Daniel Bensaïd was a philosopher and a leader of the Trotskyist movement in France. He became a leading figure in the student revolt of 1968, while studying at the University of Paris X: Nanterre.

Reviews

[Onur · Rating 3 out of 5]

Frankly speaking, personally, I bought this book by mistake instead of property less belong to Ursula Le Guin.
It is very interesting compilation regarding the ownership and including Karl Marx philosophy.
The book starts the first socialism ides belong to Max. It is not bad book

[Brian Bean · Rating 3 out of 5]

The low rating given (generally i love Bensaïd) is entirely because the book was not what I expected and I feel was narrower in scope then billed. The focus on intellectual property and the internet I felt was less relevant and less interesting than what I hoped the book would deliver on. The uniqueness of providing a “new notion” of the “dispossession of the poor” didn’t hit for me.

[Jessica Li · Rating 4 out of 5]

To me a super interesting intro to Marx’s writing, learned a lot about, even about little things (sorry I’ve never heard of rhineland before)

I’ve heard some critiques on bensaid’s examples of patents/ip, water, genomes, etc. and it seems like this is a hot take but I think he was ahead of his time these have all aged violently since he wrote this

[Kari Hinds · Rating 4 out of 5]

DENSE, but eye opening. Explore the roots of classism in places you'd never have thought to look.

[Mia]

Interesting critique of capital and the processes of commodifying goods through the lens of wood. Going to think about this every time I pick up a stick now.

[Léna]

Un gros banger encore n’hésitez pas à ramasser les brindilles dans la forêt c’est pas du vol !!!

[Deniz Colakoğlu · Rating 2 out of 5]

Kendi çıkarına olduğu zaman bir balta ile testereyi ayıracak olan keskin zeka, başkasının çıkarı söz konusu olduğunda ince dallarla yeşil odun arasındaki ayrımı ihmal eder diyor ve dünyaca ünlü mülksüzler kitabı ile aynı ismi kullanıyor👎🏻çevirmen bir satır Almanca'nın çevirisini sayfa sonunda vermiş👎🏻çevirmenin etkisinin ne kadar önemli olduğunu gösteren kötü çeviri örneği