Description
Book SynopsisWe see nonviolent resistance all over today s world, from Egypt s Tahrir Square to New York Occupy. Although we think of the last century as one marked by wars and violent conflict, in fact it was just as much a century of nonviolence as the achievements of Mohandas Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr.
Trade ReviewTodd May persuasively advances our understanding of nonviolent resistance through his examination of the values of “dignity” and “equality”. Drawing on numerous examples and lines of thought, he demonstrates that these values almost always underlie nonviolent resistance and contribute to its unique power relative to violence and institutional politics. He adeptly weaves social science and philosophy to leave the reader with a deep understanding of nonviolence.
Kurt Schock, Rutgers University
The last 40 years has seen the growth of a large and valuable literature on nonviolence from social scientists, legal scholars, and activists. One group largely absent from this growing conversation have been philosophers. Todd May's magnificent new book remedies this by bringing the very best of contemporary philosophical theory into active conversation with the concerns and perspective of an experienced activist. This is no mere abstract theoretical discussion. Rather, May shows with both erudition and subtlety why the concerns of political philosophy actually matter to the work of nonviolent action for social change. This ground-breaking work is required reading for both scholars and intellectually engaged practitioners.
Mark Lance, Georgetown University
Table of ContentsPreface and Acknowledgments vi
1 Vignettes of Nonviolence 1
2 What is Nonviolence? 33
3 Dynamics of Nonviolence 70
4 The Values of Nonviolence: Dignity 106
5 The Values of Nonviolence: Equality 130
6 Nonviolence in Today’s World 162
Notes 177
Index 188
