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On Anarchism
A selection of writings by one of the most important practitioners of social revolution. "The best available in English. Bakunin's insights into power and authority, and the conditions of freedom, are refreshing, original and still unsurpassed in clarity and vision. I read this selection with great pleasure."--Noam Chomsky
453 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1972
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About the author
Mikhail Bakunin
240books542followersRussian anarchist and political theorist Mikhail Aleksandrovich Bakunin, imprisoned and later exiled to Siberia for his considered revolutionary activities, escaped to London in 1861, opposed Communism of Karl Marx.
People often called Mikhail Alexandrovich Bakunin (Russian: Михаи́л Алекса́ндрович Баку́нин), a philosopher, the father of collectivism.
People often called Mikhail Alexandrovich Bakunin (Russian: Михаи́л Алекса́ндрович Баку́нин), a philosopher, the father of collectivism.
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
September 28, 2015
I read this years ago. It's dense and a little boring at times, but this is one of the most influential texts on contemporary anarchism. Anyone unfamiliar with the ideology should probably avoid it, but anyone who wants to further their understanding of the sharp development of anarchist philosophy during the Age of the Enlightenment may want to give it a read. It unfortunately lost influence as fascism, Adam Smith's idea of capitalism (now abandoned) and Marxism rose to prominence. Shame really because if you spend any amount of time thinking about what democracy should be, you'll eventually arrive at anarchism.
You'll never find anything on this subject at school and will grow up believing anarchism is synonymous with chaos and home-made bombs. I think the depth of a collection of essays like this would raise some eyebrows.
You'll never find anything on this subject at school and will grow up believing anarchism is synonymous with chaos and home-made bombs. I think the depth of a collection of essays like this would raise some eyebrows.
June 4, 2015
Through reading this i understand better Anarchism as a Socialist and Enlightenment project, which i should really of tried to better comprehend years ago. This is an edited compilation of Bakunin's thought, and once finished, i walked away with a great deal of respect for his writings and even a little for his agenda. It's all about the Socialist revolution here, though of course for Bakunin his socialism is Anarchism, or what has latter become known as Anarchist Syndicalism, still the focus is on creating a new and better society, so, for me, he is primarily a Socialist thinker. But as such his virtues lie in his anti-socialism, in his attention to practical reality rather than idealism, in his distrust of the state and centralization and all forms of infallible authority. In truth i've never really given this side of Anarchism much credit, I've preferred the egoist style of Anarchism of Nietzsche and Max Stirner, but I'm glad I read Bakunin, and have taken the time to better understand him and his style of socialist anarchism. It'll never actually happen as he envisaged, but i can now contextualize his convictions a little better. I also warmed to him because of his frequent clashes with Marx, he saw a power-hungry master-manipulator and he was right, Marx's behaviour in regards to the backroom politics of the International Workingman's Association reflects the rigid authoritarianism that would latter revel itself in Marxist thought as wielded by Lenin and other communist dictators. Bukinin called bullshit at the time, and everyone should of listened.
January 8, 2008
Collection of some of Bakunin's most important writings and essays. Having not really read much Bakunin before, I'm a little disappointed, I must say. Not for what he says, but what he doesn't.
He tended to repeat his own ideas a lot, which are of course valid (the state must be destroyed, not reformed; revolution must be decentralized and spontaneous by the masses of people, not handed down by a privileged elite), but also simplistic and formulaic. Overall, Bakunin's writings are not very useful in contexts beyond the theoretical and philosophical, and you can take them more as guiding and grounding principles rather than any kind of program for revolutionary action.
Then again, there's some important stuff here, especially about Bakunin's relationship with Marx and other socialists of his day, the nature of the First International being especially interesting. Recommended but not by much.
He tended to repeat his own ideas a lot, which are of course valid (the state must be destroyed, not reformed; revolution must be decentralized and spontaneous by the masses of people, not handed down by a privileged elite), but also simplistic and formulaic. Overall, Bakunin's writings are not very useful in contexts beyond the theoretical and philosophical, and you can take them more as guiding and grounding principles rather than any kind of program for revolutionary action.
Then again, there's some important stuff here, especially about Bakunin's relationship with Marx and other socialists of his day, the nature of the First International being especially interesting. Recommended but not by much.
September 22, 2015
This book shot through my mind like a ray of light. It was a confirmation more than a baptism...Bakunin was an Utopian, a Romantic, but he was also a true Visionary. What would he think of Occupy the World today? I'm not sure...But I do know this: there was a time for a Revolution and that time is gone. Unless...
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August 18, 2007i will attempt to read this book sometime in the next ten years.
May 12, 2019
La anarquía tiene el mismo fallo fundamental que el socialismo Marxista. Ambas ideologías se basan en la teoría del valor trabajo de David Ricardo, la cuál es un error absoluto, entonces trazan una línea discursiva sobre dicha teoría que fundamenta muchas otras como la teoría de la explotación la cuál da pié al concepto de plusvalía acuñado por Marx.
Esencialmente, el modelo transitivo anarquista que plantea Bakunin es el socialismo que todos conocemos (groso modo), con la diferencia de que en este caso los bienes de producción serían gestionados por asociaciones de trabajadores. Lamentablemente, su teoría de la explotación es tan errónea como la de Marx, ya que un producto no vale lo que le cuesta al obrero producirlo, sino lo que una persona está dispuesta a pagar por él.
Por otro lado, no quiero ni pensar en lo complicado que sería gestionar toda una red de infraestructura nacional a base de poner de acuerdo a miles de asociaciones y pequeños colectivos.
Esencialmente, el modelo transitivo anarquista que plantea Bakunin es el socialismo que todos conocemos (groso modo), con la diferencia de que en este caso los bienes de producción serían gestionados por asociaciones de trabajadores. Lamentablemente, su teoría de la explotación es tan errónea como la de Marx, ya que un producto no vale lo que le cuesta al obrero producirlo, sino lo que una persona está dispuesta a pagar por él.
Por otro lado, no quiero ni pensar en lo complicado que sería gestionar toda una red de infraestructura nacional a base de poner de acuerdo a miles de asociaciones y pequeños colectivos.
September 8, 2007
Good selection of bits -- a cross section of Bakunin's interests and moods.
January 4, 2008
There's no escaping classical anarchism being boring and the fact that anything written before the 20th century is laaaaaaaaaaaaaaame
January 17, 2008
Decent book. First of its kind in english, follwing "God & State" by Dover.
March 18, 2013
A man of passion for freedom and justice...although sadly an anti-semite too.
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July 20, 2013anarchys
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January 25, 2022“Marx speaks disdainfully of this Lumpenproletariat…but in them, and only in them - and not in the bourgeois-minded strata of the working class - is crystallized the whole power and intelligence of the Social Revolution. In moments of crisis the masses will not hesitate to bum down their own homes and neighborhoods…they develop a passion for destruction…of itself this negative passion is not nearly enough to attain the revolutionary heights but without it, revolution would be impossible. Revolution requires extensive and widespread destruction, a fecund and renovating destruction, since in this way, and only in this way, are new worlds born.�
“…poverty and degradation are not sufficient to generate the Social Revolution. They may call forth sporadic local rebellions, but not great and widespread mass uprisings. � It is indispensable that the people be inspired by a universal ideal, that they have a general idea of their rights, and a deep, passionate belief in the validity of these rights. When this idea and this popular faith are joined to the kind of misery that leads to desperation then the Social Revolution is near and inevitable and no force on earth can stop it."
“Let us therefore trust the eternal Spirit which destroys and annihilates only because it is the unfathomable and eternal source of all life. The passion for destruction is a creative passion, too!�
“…poverty and degradation are not sufficient to generate the Social Revolution. They may call forth sporadic local rebellions, but not great and widespread mass uprisings. � It is indispensable that the people be inspired by a universal ideal, that they have a general idea of their rights, and a deep, passionate belief in the validity of these rights. When this idea and this popular faith are joined to the kind of misery that leads to desperation then the Social Revolution is near and inevitable and no force on earth can stop it."
“Let us therefore trust the eternal Spirit which destroys and annihilates only because it is the unfathomable and eternal source of all life. The passion for destruction is a creative passion, too!�
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April 5, 2018"Bakunin looked at nature and society in a more dialectical way and saw change occurring through the reconciliation of opposites: 'the harmony of natural forces appears only as the result of a continual struggle, which is the real condition of life and of movement. In nature, as in society as well, order without struggle is death.' Nature itself only acts in an unconscious way according to natural laws. Nevertheless, universal order exists in nature and society. Even man with his powers of reasoning is 'the material product of the union and action of natural forces'." DTI: Chapter Two: 'Society and the State'; 12. Bakunin on Anarchy, op. cit., p. 271.
"...as Bakunin declared, 'Man is truly free only among equally free men.'" DTI; Chapter Three: 'Freedom and Equality'; 6. Bakunin, 'Revolutionary Catechism' (1866), Bakunin on Anarchy, ed. Sam Dolgoff (Allen & Unwin, 1973), pp. 76, 261.
"...as Bakunin declared, 'Man is truly free only among equally free men.'" DTI; Chapter Three: 'Freedom and Equality'; 6. Bakunin, 'Revolutionary Catechism' (1866), Bakunin on Anarchy, ed. Sam Dolgoff (Allen & Unwin, 1973), pp. 76, 261.
July 23, 2018
Brilliant collection of Bakunin's writings. Wading through Bakunin's work can be difficult at times and Sam does a great job of collecting the important passages Bakunin wrote. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this collection.
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February 4, 2021wtf
December 9, 2023
I would not say it’s a successful collection, as it mostly contains the editors� and translator’s own comments. Yet, has a good content when it comes to the introduction to anarchism.
January 26, 2025
Bakunin argues that the state, regardless of its ideological orientation, inherently serves as an instrument of oppression that constrains human freedom and potential. He particularly challenges Marx's concept of the dictatorship of the proletariat, asserting that any form of centralized state power, even when claiming to represent working-class interests, will inevitably reproduce patterns of domination and exploitation.
Central to Bakunin's analysis is the relationship between religious authority and political power, which he views as mutually reinforcing systems of control. He posits that religious institutions historically legitimize state authority while the state protects religious hierarchy, creating a dual mechanism of social control that suppresses individual autonomy and collective self-organization. This critique extends beyond traditional religious institutions to what Bakunin terms "political theology" - the quasi-religious elevation of state authority and nationalist ideology that demands similar forms of unquestioning obedience.
The text also develops Bakunin's positive vision of social organization through free federation and mutual aid. He envisions a society structured around voluntary associations and workers' collectives, coordinated through bottom-up federalist principles rather than top-down state authority. This organizational model emphasizes direct action and self-management, with decisions made through direct democratic participation rather than representative systems that Bakunin argues inevitably lead to the formation of new political elites.
Book comes with a companion re Marx who criticized Bakunin's emphasis on spontaneous peasant rebellion rather than organized proletarian revolution, seeing it as naive and ineffective.
But Mao proved Bakunin's point about peasant revolutionary potential...So does Ho Chi Minh when he organized peasant resistance against French colonialism and Zapata led three indigenous peasant movements during the Mexican Revolution, Pancho Villa led peasant armies, Thomas Sankara same.
Notes:
"Freedom without socialism is privilege and injustice; socialism without freedom is slavery and brutality."
"The freedom of all is essential to my freedom."
"If God really existed, it would be necessary to abolish him."
"We must spread our principles, not with words but with deeds, for this is the most popular, the most potent, and the most irresistible form of propaganda."
"I am truly free only when all human beings, men and women, are equally free."
"The passion for destruction is a creative passion, too."
Central to Bakunin's analysis is the relationship between religious authority and political power, which he views as mutually reinforcing systems of control. He posits that religious institutions historically legitimize state authority while the state protects religious hierarchy, creating a dual mechanism of social control that suppresses individual autonomy and collective self-organization. This critique extends beyond traditional religious institutions to what Bakunin terms "political theology" - the quasi-religious elevation of state authority and nationalist ideology that demands similar forms of unquestioning obedience.
The text also develops Bakunin's positive vision of social organization through free federation and mutual aid. He envisions a society structured around voluntary associations and workers' collectives, coordinated through bottom-up federalist principles rather than top-down state authority. This organizational model emphasizes direct action and self-management, with decisions made through direct democratic participation rather than representative systems that Bakunin argues inevitably lead to the formation of new political elites.
Book comes with a companion re Marx who criticized Bakunin's emphasis on spontaneous peasant rebellion rather than organized proletarian revolution, seeing it as naive and ineffective.
But Mao proved Bakunin's point about peasant revolutionary potential...So does Ho Chi Minh when he organized peasant resistance against French colonialism and Zapata led three indigenous peasant movements during the Mexican Revolution, Pancho Villa led peasant armies, Thomas Sankara same.
Notes:
"Freedom without socialism is privilege and injustice; socialism without freedom is slavery and brutality."
"The freedom of all is essential to my freedom."
"If God really existed, it would be necessary to abolish him."
"We must spread our principles, not with words but with deeds, for this is the most popular, the most potent, and the most irresistible form of propaganda."
"I am truly free only when all human beings, men and women, are equally free."
"The passion for destruction is a creative passion, too."
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