Contentious Politics

by Charles Tilly, Sidney Tarrow

Revolutions, social movements, religious and ethnic conflict, nationalism and civil rights, and transnational these forms of contentious politics combine in Charles Tilly's and Sidney Tarrow's Contentious Politics . The book presents a set of analytical tools and procedures for study, comparison, and explanation of these very different sorts of contention. Drawing on many historical and contemporary cases, the book shows that similar principles describe and explain a wide variety of struggles as well as many more routine forms of politics. Tilly and Tarrow have written the book to introduce readers to an exciting new program of political and sociological analysis. To view Power Point slides of the last undergraduate course of Charles Tilly (with Ernesto Castaneda) in Spring 2007, which are related to his Paradigm book with Sidney Tarrow, Contentious Politics , please click here.

Genres: Politics, Political Science, Nonfiction, Sociology, Social Movements, Academic, School

260 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 2006

About the author

Charles Tilly was an American sociologist, political scientist, and historian renowned for his pioneering contributions to the study of social change, state formation, and contentious politics. A prolific scholar, Tilly authored over 600 articles and more than 50 books, shaping disciplines ranging from sociology and history to political science. His research was grounded in large-scale, comparative historical analysis, exemplified by his influential works Coercion, Capital, and European States, Durable Inequality, and Dynamics of Contention.
Tilly began his academic career after earning his doctorate in sociology from Harvard University, where he studied under noted figures like George C. Homans and Barrington Moore Jr. He taught at several major institutions, including the University of Michigan, The New School, and ultimately Columbia University, where he held the Joseph L. Buttenwieser Professorship of Social Science.
He developed a distinctive theoretical approach that rejected simplistic, static models of society, instead emphasizing dynamic processes and relational mechanisms. Tilly’s theories of state formation, particularly his provocative comparison of war-making and state-making to organized crime, remain central in political sociology. He also played a key role in the evolution of historical sociology and the relational sociology movement, especially through his collaborations and influence on the New York School.
A leading theorist of social movements, Tilly outlined how modern protest became structured around campaigns, repertoires of contention, and public displays of unity, worthiness, numbers, and commitment. His work with scholars like Sidney Tarrow and Doug McAdam further redefined the field by linking social movements to broader political processes.
Tilly received numerous honors, including membership in the National Academy of Sciences and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, as well as multiple honorary doctorates. His legacy endures through awards bearing his name and through continued influence on generations of social scientists.

Reviews

[Aslihan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Expectations are very high given that the authors are two prominents figures of social movements literature. Unfortunately, the broad range of issues and historical cases covered in the book prevent it from achieving a certain depth in analysis. There was a rather mechanical framework with emphasis on the analytical utility of concepts like events, episodes, mechanisms, processes and repertoires that were very well backed up by historical and contemporary references of contention. However, there was also a lot that was left out, most probably deliberately externalized to keep the focus of the book on track. There was not enough reference to the relationship between contention and state making, not enough on the crisis of the nation-state and possibilities of addressing contention outside of the domain of the state -as some movements are leaning towards-, not enough of the role of international actors and/or economic contention among actors in shaping contention. The book provides a nicely put analytical framework for a student of social movement research, yet with limited theoretical insight as to how the field could be expanded.

[Mato Mauno]

Loppujen lopuks ehkä kätevämpi henkilölle, joka tutkii kyseistä aihetta, sillä suuri osa kului ns. työkalujen antamiseen, mutta toisaalta tarjos tosi ajankohtasia näkökulmia myös tavalliselle kaduntallaajalle, kun esim kävelee Elokapinan ohi, kiistämiseen/haastamiseen” (lainaus kurssilta xD).

[Mariam · Rating 1 out of 5]

“Israel/Palestine’s political opportunity structure divides sharply between Israeli citizens and Palestinian subjects”

He could’ve wrote Palestinian population or Palestinian citizens, instead of Palestinian subjects.

The book is highly Zionist-washed, the referral to the Zionist occupation as a social movement dismisses the genocide that has been happening for the past 70 years (and going), and instead, his focus is on Islamic jihad and it’s attacks on the Zionist occupation.

Should’ve kept this book in your drafts.

[Christina · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book could be more consistent with terms, especially since it's defining a lot of them, but then it will use different terms sort of interchangeably. Also, it conflates Ukraine's 2004 Orange Revolution and the 2013-2014 EuroMaidan/Maidan revolution (both of which it discusses at different times), as well as at one point calling the Orange Revolution the Green Revolution. Overall, I think it's a really helpful book in many ways, but it could do with much more thorough editing.

[Andy Wilson · Rating 3 out of 5]

We read this for class and the edition we read was supposed to clear up some of the problems with previous editions. It still fails to answer the issues to sought to correct.

[karter stanton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Shoutout politic theory

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Before deciding that a particular performance is a riot, ask yourself who is telling the story – a participant, an onlooker, or an opponent of the claim makers.

[Kathleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good introduction to contentious politics for upper division undergraduates. Offers a conceptual analysis of the various kinds of contentious politics (i.e., social movements, armed struggle, revolutions). Written in more challenging language than A Primer on Social Movements, so less accessible. However, more interesting because of each chapter's focus on a particular social movement or conflict.

[Sina · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a must have for anyone doing serious study of social movements. It's a more coherent and comprehensive take on the contentious politics framework for understanding movements and collective action. It's basically a manual for any would-be student of social movements, repeat with definitions, models, and examples.

[Noelle]

Assigned reading for a course on social movements in Latin America

[Mills College Library]

303.484 T579c 2015