A Philosophy of Resistance: Essays Against the Order of Things
by Editors: Brenton Brock and Dr. Elijah Zehyoue
Awatum Press


"Resistance is not merely opposition to domination but a demand for recognition."

Editors Brock and Zehyoue present thirteen thought-provoking essays by fifteen writers, philosophers, and intellectual activists exploring societal, political, and personal resistance through a panorama of possibilities, strategies, action, and potential reaction. An introduction centers on paintings by Francisco de Goya depicting opposition against tyrant Napoleon Bonaparte. Contributor Yannick Marszalek touches on fears of death and their transformation into life's affirmations. Saumya Sirothia and Aditya Gupta emphasize spiritual transcendence as a path to resistance. Casey Rentmeester examines, through current and time-honored upheavals, the purity that freedom embodies. Cristian Gonzales Arevalo portrays the poles of resistance inherent in sexual qualities of sadomasochism. Bjorn Larsen and Martin Burop offer guidance to "real-world solutions for civil disobedience." Christina Sikalopoulou arrays utopian imagery infused in the works of twentieth-century theorists. Feminist Maelle Roussel propounds collective resistance to aid those unfairly marginalized.

The overreaching power of government, Nishant Upadhyay asserts, is fairly balanced by reactive violence. Devising methodologies against the pedagogies that uphold oppression, Fin Monteleone posits pragmatic strategies for resisting. Justin Pearce investigates Martin Luther King Jr.'s view of the relationship between violent and non-violent resistance, while Canar Necatigil extols the innate "right to self-defense." Bradley C. Dart metaphorically compares collective resistance to the workings of electrical networks. Lukas C. Bartosch concludes with a fascinating look at societal "dancing resistance."

This erudite compendium is the collaboration between editors Elijah Zehyoue, who specializes in African Studies at Georgetown University, and Brenton Brock, adjunct instructor of Critical Race, Gender, and Cultural Studies at American University. The two are clearly highly motivated to promote the concept of resistance as it might apply in numerous, worldwide situations. Their assiduous efforts will appeal to those who approach the materials cited in a scholarly ambiance, and anyone who seeks encouragement in difficult environments calling for crucial social and political activism.

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