Anarchist Seeds Beneath The Snow: Left-Libertarian Thought and British Writers from William Morris to Colin Ward

(Paperback, Revised ed.)

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From William Morris to Oscar Wilde and George Orwell, left-libertarian thought has long been an important but neglected part of British cultural and political history. In this detailed study, David Goodway seeks to recover and revitalise the indigenous anarchist tradition. Both a cultural history of left-libertarian thought in Britain and an application of that history to current politics, Goodway argues that a recovered anarchist tradition could, and should, be a touchstone for contemporary political radicals.

Reviews

"Anarchist Seeds beneath the Snow is an impressive achievement for its rigorous scholarship across a wide range of sources, for collating this diverse material in a cogent and systematic narrative-cum-argument, and for elucidating it with clarity and flair... It is a book that needed to be written and now deserves to be read."
--Journal of William Morris Studies

"Goodway outlines with admirable clarity the many variations in anarchist thought. By extending outwards to left-libertarians he takes on even greater diversity."
--Sheila Rowbotham, Red Pepper

"A splendid survey of 'left-libertarian thought' in this country, it has given me hours of delight and interest. Though it is very learned, it isn't dry. Goodway's friends in the awkward squad (especially William Blake) are both stimulating and comforting companions in today's political climate."
--A.N. Wilson, Daily Telegraph

"The history of the British anarchist movement has been little studied or appreciated outside of the movement itself. Anarchist Seeds beneath the Snow, should go a long way towards rectifying this blind spot in established labour and political history. His broad ranging erudition combined with a penetrating understanding of the subject matter has produced a fascinating, highly readable history."
--Joey Cain, edwardcarpenterforum.org

Author Bio

David Goodway is a British social and cultural historian who has written principally on anarchism and libertarian socialism for 20 years. He is the editor of For Workers' Powers and various other collections.