Thursday, September 29, 2016

"Blood and Progress"

New from Edinburgh University Press: Blood and Progress: Violence in Pursuit of Emancipation by Nick Hewlett.

About the book, from the publisher:
From ending the feudal order to struggling against colonial rule; from revolts against slavery to the Bolshevik, Chinese and Cuban revolutions; and from ending foreign occupations to civil wars to overthrow dictators, violent means are seen to justify the non-violent ends. 'Necessary violence' was taken for granted by revolutionaries inspired by Marx, Lenin, Mao and Castro, and countless others.

Nick Hewlett places the objectives of non-violence and peace centre-stage to give you a new understanding of violence in revolt. He argues that making the goal of a wholly peaceful society explicit makes an important difference to how we approach and understand violence in pursuit of emancipation.
Nick Hewlett is Professor of French Studies at the University of Warwick.

--Marshal Zeringue