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The Art of Not Being Governed: An Anarchist History of Upland Southeast Asia

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An anarchist narrative of Asia's stateless societies.

If you're intrigued by the untold stories of people living on the fringes of society, "The Art of Not Being Governed" will be a revelation. It's not just a history book; it's an exploration of the human spirit's desire for autonomy. James C. Scott takes you on an odyssey through Zomia, introducing you to cultures that prioritized freedom over the constraints of statehood, a concept that challenges our understanding of civilization and governance. This book will shift your perspective and offer a deep dive into the lives of those who chose to exist outside the state's reach.

  • Bernard Schwartz Book Award (2010)
  • John K. Fairbank Prize (2010)
Note: While we do our best to ensure the accuracy of cover images, ISBNs may at times be reused for different editions of the same title which may hence appear as a different cover.

The Art of Not Being Governed: An Anarchist History of Upland Southeast Asia

Regular price $16.90
Unit price
per
ISBN: 9780300169171
Authors: James C. Scott
Date of Publication: 2010-11-30
Format: Paperback
Related Collections: Politics, History, Philosophy, Sociology, Economics
Goodreads rating: 4.14
(rated by 1238 readers)

Description

For two thousand years the disparate groups that now reside in Zomia (a mountainous region the size of Europe that consists of portions of seven Asian countries) have fled the projects of the organized state societies that surround them—slavery, conscription, taxes, corvée labor, epidemics, and warfare. This book, essentially an “anarchist history,” is the first-ever examination of the huge literature on state-making whose author evaluates why people would deliberately and reactively remain stateless. Among the strategies employed by the people of Zomia to remain stateless are physical dispersion in rugged terrain; agricultural practices that enhance mobility; pliable ethnic identities; devotion to prophetic, millenarian leaders; and maintenance of a largely oral culture that allows them to reinvent their histories and genealogies as they move between and around states. In accessible language, James Scott, recognized worldwide as an eminent authority in Southeast Asian, peasant, and agrarian studies, tells the story of the peoples of Zomia and their unlikely odyssey in search of self-determination. He redefines our views on Asian politics, history, demographics, and even our fundamental ideas about what constitutes civilization, and challenges us with a radically different approach to history that presents events from the perspective of stateless peoples and redefines state-making as a form of “internal colonialism.” This new
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Similar Reads

An anarchist narrative of Asia's stateless societies.

If you're intrigued by the untold stories of people living on the fringes of society, "The Art of Not Being Governed" will be a revelation. It's not just a history book; it's an exploration of the human spirit's desire for autonomy. James C. Scott takes you on an odyssey through Zomia, introducing you to cultures that prioritized freedom over the constraints of statehood, a concept that challenges our understanding of civilization and governance. This book will shift your perspective and offer a deep dive into the lives of those who chose to exist outside the state's reach.

  • Bernard Schwartz Book Award (2010)
  • John K. Fairbank Prize (2010)
Note: While we do our best to ensure the accuracy of cover images, ISBNs may at times be reused for different editions of the same title which may hence appear as a different cover.