Defining the Enemy: Adult Education in Social Action

by Michael Newman

Some of the most intense learning in our adult lives can occur when we are in the presence of enemies, whether those enemies are oppressive employers, bigots, racists, polluters or the powers behind an earth mover knocking down a rain forest. This original and challenging book looks at this kind of learning in Aboriginal adult education, trade union training, feminist adult education, peace education and environmental education. It critically reviews some currently fashionable adult education theories, concluding that a number are simply too nice, too unfocused, too inward-looking or too mechanical to help people who are engaged in social action. It canvasses the ideas of a number of adult educators who have confronted – and helped their learners confront – exploitation, imposition and injustice. And it proposes some processes that adult educators might use to help people learn how to identify, define, and then deal with their enemies. The book is written in a lively and accessible style. The argument is developed in clusters of ideas. Links are made using songs, anecdotes, a poem and a quotation from a play. Personal account is interwoven with analysis and extensive reference to the literature of adult education. And there is a foreword in which he examines his own position in relation to adult education, social action and violence.

Paperback

Published November 1, 1994