Gandhi and Beyond: Nonviolence for an Age of Terrorism
by David Cortright
List Price:
Our Price: $3.09
You Save: $21.86 (88%)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Category: Book
See more book details and other editions
Book Summary Information
Author: David CortrightEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Original Language); English (Unknown); English (Published)
Published: 2006-09
ISBN: 1594512663
Number of pages: 280
Publisher: Paradigm Publishers
Product features:
- ISBN13: 9781594512667
- Condition: NEW
- Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
- Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices
Book Reviews of Gandhi and Beyond: Nonviolence for an Age of Terrorism
Book Review: Very enjoyable and helpful reading on nonviolence
Summary: 5 Stars
I had two misgivings about this book before I began to read it. Both of my misgivings turned out to be unfounded. The first one was that since I have read my fair share of nonviolence books I feared that it would all be repetition. Cortright starts the book with Mohandas Gandhi and Martin Luther King, but not with the ordinary biographical stories of their lives. Rather he uses them as vehicles to explain the secret of nonviolence together with today's scholars and his own opinions. It works very well and even though Gandhi and King are familiar to me I learned a lot, especially in a later chapter where he writes about Gandhi's and King's views on gender and sexuality. The second misgiving was the subtitle which made me hesitate if I would buy it or not: `Nonviolence for an Age of Terrorism'. I was afraid that this was another American too hung up on terrorism; like terrorism was the biggest problem humans face today. As a Swede, living in a country who has not been struck by terrorism or taken part in the `war on terrorism' it might be more difficult for me to understand why terrorism is seen as the biggest problem in the world. But I don't really get how that can be the biggest problem when tens of thousands of people are dying every day of poverty. Actually the book doesn't talk very much about terrorism, but poses an important challenge to nonviolent activists. If we want to stop the `war on terror' we ought to be able to provide a better solution to the problem of terrorism than the military does.
I have been racking my brain on how we can be more effective in our nonviolent campaigns. This book gave me a lot of food for thought on the subject. But unlike strategists like Gene Sharp, Cortright doesn't limit nonviolence to its effectiveness. He sees nonviolence not just as a method but as a way of life. He tells about his struggles and his times of doubts about the ideas of nonviolence. My respect and admiration for the author rose after I understood how involved he has been for many decades and still is in the peace movement. Here is a man who not only teaches and writes about Gandhi and King, but actually tries to use their methods in his life. He manages to combines the learnings of the history of nonviolence with the nonviolent movement of today - a potent combination that we need more of. I am sure military analysts sit day in and day out trying to analyze yesterday's battles to learn how to fight more effectively tomorrow. We nonviolent activists have something to learn from the military in that sense. Cortright's book really highlights the importance of making this analysis and to learn from our mistakes.
The book gives a refreshing criticism of our nonviolent icons. I had heard negative rumours about Gandhi and King but was unsure if they were true. According to this book some of them were and some were not. But Cortright makes a more important point - you can admire one part of a human's life - like Gandhi's nonviolent struggle against the British occupation while at the same time be deeply critical of another part of the same person's life - like Gandhi's warped views on gender and sexuality. Cortright rightly points out that we should not expect flawless leaders. Talking about leaders, I have been embarrassed to keep coming with nothing but male nonviolent role models in my nonviolent workshops. So I was happy to find two great female role models in this book; Dorothy Day and Barbara Deming. Two women who really deserve more appreciation for their contributions in the nonviolence struggle.
In the end of the book Cortright gives us some practical tools to use in the nonviolent struggle were he emphasizes the importance of setting up concrete and achievable goals and warning us from disregarding the importance of mundane work like fund-raising and working effectively with the media. He also encourages us to try new, creative and some times more risky nonviolence methods; not always the petitions, demonstrations but also boycotts, strikes, blockades and sit-ins. These types of methods have proved to be the most effective in the nonviolence movement according to the author.
We who work for peace and justice face incredible challenges. It is easy to get discouraged when you see what you are up against. Cortright gives us hope in spite of this. He shows many examples of how nonviolence has made fantastic gains the last decades. There have been victories even in the cases were it seemed we failed. And it takes time, some times a very long time, to change for the better. What we need in the struggle is persistence and hope according to Cortright. Both these traits have grown stronger in me while reading this book.
Martin Smedjeback, secretary of nonviolence in Swedish Fellowship of Reconciliation
Nonfiction Books
Book Subjects
- Arts & Photography
- Audiobooks on Cassette
- Audiobooks on CD
- Biographies & Memoirs
- Business & Investing
- Children's Books
- Comics & Graphic Novels
- Computers & Internet
- Cooking, Food & Wine
- e-Books
- Engineering
- Entertainment
- Gay & Lesbian
- Health, Mind & Body
- History
- Home & Garden
- Horror
- Law
- Literature & Fiction
- Medicine
- Mystery & Thrillers
- Nonfiction
- Outdoors & Nature
- Parenting & Families
- Professional & Technical
- Reference
- Religion & Spirituality
- Romance
- Science
- Science Fiction & Fantasy
- Sports
- Teens
- Travel
Most talked about in Peace is Possible
Ravi Shankar - Vision of Peace: The Art of Ravi ShankarRelease date: 2005-03-21; Music CD
Best price: $9.90
Price in other shops:
John Lennon - ImagineRelease date: 2003-08-26; Music CD
Best price: $21.38
Price in other shops:
The U.S. vs. John LennonLIONSGATE ENT.; Release date: 2007-02-13; DVD
Best price: $7.24
Price in other shops:
Warrior Politics: Why Leadership Demands a Pagan Ethosby Robert D. Kaplan
Vintage; Published: 2003-01-07; Paperback; Book
Best price: $3.89
Price in other shops:
Militarist Christendom And The Gospel Of The Prince Of Peaceby Daniel H. Shubin
Airleaf Publishing; Published: 2006-10-27; Paperback; Book
Best price: $12.00
Price in other shops:
War is a Racket: The Antiwar Classic by America's Most Decorated Soldierby Smedley D. Butler
Feral House; Published: 2003-04; Paperback; Book
Best price: $5.14
Price in other shops:
Why We FightSONY PICTURES HOME ENT; Release date: 2006-06-27; DVD
Best price: $7.45
Price in other shops:
Gandhi and Beyond: Nonviolence for an Age of Terrorismby David Cortright
Paradigm Publishers; Published: 2006-09; Paperback; Book
Best price: $16.47
Price in other shops:
Nonviolent Soldier of Islam: Badshah Khan: A Man to Match His Mountainsby Eknath Easwaran
Nilgiri Press; Published: 1999-11-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $9.98
Price in other shops:
Healing the Divide: A Concert for Peace and ReconciliationRelease date: 2007-07-10; Music CD
Best price: $10.97
Price in other shops:
Similar books summaries and other product reviews
Approaches to Peace: A Reader in Peace StudiesOxford University Press, USA; Published: 1999-07-29; Paperback; Book
Best price: $18.99
Price in other shops:
Peace Is Every Step: The Path of Mindfulness in Everyday Lifeby Thich Nhat Hanh
Bantam; Published: 1992-03-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $5.37
Price in other shops:
Peace: A History of Movements and IdeasCambridge University Press; Published: 2008-06-02; Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.75
Price in other shops:
I'd Rather Teach Peaceby Colman McCarthy
Orbis Books; Published: 2008-05-31; Paperback; Book
Best price: $9.32
Price in other shops:
Contemporary Conflict Resolution, 2nd editionby Oliver Ramsbotham, Tom Woodhouse, Hugh Miall
Polity; Published: 2005-12-09; Paperback; Book
Best price: $19.16
Price in other shops:
Gandhi's Way: A Handbook of Conflict Resolutionby Mark Juergensmeyer
University of California Press; Published: 2005-04-18; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.00
Price in other shops:
Jesus and Nonviolence: A Third Way (Facets)by Walter Wink
FORTRESS PRESS; Published: 2003-04-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.59
Price in other shops:
Nonviolence in Theory and Practiceby Barry L. Gan
Waveland Press; Published: 2004-08; Paperback; Book
Best price: $25.00
Price in other shops:
Nonviolence: 25 Lessons from the History of a Dangerous Idea (Modern Library Chronicles)by Mark Kurlansky
Modern Library; Published: 2006-09-12; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $11.58
Price in other shops:
The Power of Nonviolence: Writings by Advocates of Peaceby Howard Zinn
Beacon Press; Published: 2002-09-12; Paperback; Book
Best price: $6.40
Price in other shops: