Against Civilization: Readings & Reflections

A new anthology edited by the anarchist philosopher John Zerzan, Against Civilization: Readings and Reflections. The book is composed of excerpts from the works of a wide range of authors who’ve offered radical critiques of industrial society. Against Civilization is not all poetic rage; the various contributions include reasoned analyses of the inherent contradictions of industrial capitalism, celebrations of vernacular culture, and inspiring visions of worlds beyond systematic domination and exploitation. As Kirkpatrick Sale has said of the book, ‘It is its collective refusal to say ‘Here is civilization: just accept it’ that makes this volume so important. Read it and you will never think of civilization in the same way again. Twist the popular Earth First! slogan from “Visualize Industrial Collapse” to “Actualize Industrial Collapse” and you have the gist of this anthology. To many it has seemed that John Zerzan has been alone in his attack on the totality of civilization. Now the reader can see a chronology: diversity and passion from hundreds of years of resistance against the nightmare we have inherited today. This book will introduce ecologists to anarchists and anarchists to ecologists; intellectuals to activist perspectives; and vice-versa. I think Chellis Glendinning’s description in her Foreword is accurate when she says “Herein the reader will discover the questions that need to be asked and insights that beg to be nurtured if humankind and the natural world as we know it are to thrive in the future