2007/08/22 by Leonard Williams · 2 citations
Social Sciences · #Anarchism and Radical Politics #Political Economy and Marxism
paper · doi:10.1080/07393140701510160
openalex publication_date 2007/08/22 · openalex created_date 2022/05/12 · openalex updated_date 2026/05/21
Abstract Long regarded as a dated school of political thought, anarchism has been rejuvenated in the last decade or so. From anarcho-punk bands putting out “noise music” to bands of young people sporting black attire and the circle-A, its cultural symbols are widely present. Self-identified “anarchists” have often taken center stage at protests directed at major political and financial institutions. My central purpose in this article is to explore the variety of ideological orientations found in the contemporary anarchist movement, as expressed by several of its theorists—from Chornsky and Bookchin, on the one hand, to Zerzan, Bey, and Black, on the other. The article highlights a few of the metaphysical issues raised by today’s anarchism—rationalism versus anti-rationalism, technology versus nature, creeds versus deeds—and concludes by identifying the fundamental principles characteristic of contemporary anarchism.