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Social movements take shape in relation to the kind of state theyface, while over time states are transformed by the movements thatthey both incorporate and resist. Green States and Social Movements isa comparativestudy of the environmental movement's successes and failures in fourvery different states: the USA, UK, Germany and Norway. The history covers the entire sweep of the modern environmental era that begins in1970. The endin view is a green transformation of the state and society on a par with earlier transformations that gave us first the liberal capitaliststate and then the welfare state. The authors explain why such atransformation is now most likely in Germany, and why it is leastlikely in the United States, which has lost the status ofenvironmental pioneer that it gained in the early 1970s. Theircomparative analysis also explains the role played by social movementsin making modern societies more deeply democratic, and yields insightsinto the strategic choices of environmental movements as they decide on what terms to engage, enter or resist the state. Sometimes it makes sense for a movement to act conventionally, as a green party or set ofinterest groups. But sometimes inclusion can mean co-optation, inwhich case a movement can instead emphasize action in and throughcivil society. ... Read more

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Explores the beliefs and activities of the Ku Klux Klan, the American Nazi Party, and such late twentieth-century white supremacist extremist groups as the Christian Identity movement. ... Read more

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This clear and concise book examines the crucial relationship between globalization and social movements. Deftly combining nuanced theory with rich empirical examples, leading scholar Valentine M. Moghadam focuses especially on three transnational social movements-Islamism, feminism, and global justice. Defining globalization as a complex process in which the mobility of capital, peoples, organizations, movements, and ideas takes on an increasingly transnational form, the author shows how both physical and electronic mobility has helped to create dynamic global social movements. Globalization has engendered the spread of neoliberal capitalism across the world, but it also has engendered opposition and collective action. ... Read more

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Social movements have wrought dramatic changes upon American society. This observation necessarily raises the question: Why do some movements succeed in their endeavors while others fail? This book answers this question by introducing an analytical framework that begins with a shift in emphasis away from the characteristics of movements toward the targets of protests and affected bystanders, their interests, and why they respond as they do. Such a shift brings into focus how targets and other interests assess both their exposure to movement disruptions as well as the costs of conceding to movement demands. From this vantage point, diverse outcomes stem not only from a movement's capabilities for protest but also from differences among targets and others in their vulnerability to disruption and the substance of movement goals. Applied to the civil rights movement, this approach recasts conventional accounts of the movement's outcome in local struggles and national politics, and also clarifies the broader logic of social change. ... Read more

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This latest volume in the "Research in Social Movements, Conflicts and Change" series contains three sections of data-driven articles that address topics central to scholarship on social movements and conflict resolution. Section One contains two papers on the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, one focused on the Arab Israeli Land Day campaign and its implications for political process theory, while the other analyzes the emotional landscape of the long-running Women in Black vigils. Section Two contains four papers linked by their treatment of tactical and strategic issues associated with gender-based and gay and lesbian social movements, organizations, and their campaigns and activities. The two articles in Section Three treat themes associated with the complex intersection of identity formation and mobilization. As has long been the RSMCC series tradition, Volume 31 showcases top-level, original, and multi-method research on a variety of movements, organizations and conflicts in ways that contribute to theory-building. ... Read more

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Most books on social movements treat them as special episodes, apart from normal politics. This book is about how social protest movements become involved with political parties and elections. It reveals how movements really are a "normal" part of modern politics, shaping parties and elections.Everyone wanting to know how political parties and social movements actually operate should read this book. ... Read more

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Why do social movements take the forms they do? How do activists' efforts and beliefs interact with the cultural and political contexts in which they work? Why do activists take particular strategic paths, and how do their strategies affect the course and impact of the movement? Social Movements aims to bridge the gap between "political opportunities" theorists who look at the circumstances and effects of social movement efforts and "collective identity theorists" who focus on the reconstruction of meaning and identity through collective action. The volume brings together scholars from a variety of perspectives to consider the intersections of opportunities and identities, structures and cultures, in social movements. Representing a new generation of social movement theory, the contributors build bridges between political opportunities and collective identity paradigms, between analyses of movements' internal dynamics and their external contexts, between approaches that emphasize structure and those that emphasize culture.They cover a wide range of case studies from both the U.S. and Western Europe as well as from less developed countries. Movements include feminist organizing in the U.S. and India, lesbian/gay movements, revolutionary movements in Burma, the Philippines, and Indonesia, labor campaigns in England and South Africa, civil rights movements, community organizing, political party organizing in Canada, student movements of the left and right, and the Religious Right. Many chapters also pay explicit attention to the dynamics of gender, race, and class in social movements. Combining a variety of perspectives on a wide range of topics, the contributors' synthetic approach shifts the field of social movements forward in important new directions. ... Read more

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Praise for Social Movements
"An important collection, integrating studies of consciousness, collective identity and culture with studies of state and organizational structure and strategy.Each chapter marks an advance in our understanding of social movements."
--Jane Mansbridge, Adams Professor, Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University

"This wonderful book is a vital step forward in the building of social movement theory."--Mary Katzenstein, Professor of Government and Women's Studies, Cornell University

"Meyer, Whittier, and Robnett call for a collective response to the gaps in social movement research today, offering bridges between sociologists and political scientists.Rarely have I read so well integrated a set of papers on so broad a theme in social movement research."
-Sidney Tarrow, Maxwell Upson Professor of Governmetn, Cornell University

"This wide-ranging and thoughtful collection is a showcase for the talents of a younger generation of social movement scholars.It bodes well for the future of the field."
--William A. Gamson, Professor of Sociology, Boston College

"Meyer, Whittier, and Robnett have compiled a stimulating, rich, and theoretically groundbreaking set of articles.This is 'must reading' for anyone interested in theoretical advances and shifts taking place in the social movement field."
--Verta Taylor, Professor of Sociology, Ohio State University ... Read more

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From the earliest campaign against Augusto Pinochet's repressive practices to the recent massive demonstrations against the World Trade Organization, transnational collective action involving nongovernmental organizations has been restructuring politics and changing the world. Ranging from Santiago to Seattle and covering over twenty-five years of transnational advocacy, the essays in Restructuring World Politics offer a clear, richly nuanced picture of this process and its far-reaching implications in an increasingly globalized political economy. The book brings together scholars, activists, and policy makers to show how such advocacy addresses-and reshapes-key issues in the areas of labor, human rights, gender justice, democratization, and sustainable development throughout the world.

A primary goal of transnational advocacy is to create, strengthen, implement, and monitor international norms. How transnational networks go about doing this, why and when they succeed, and what problems and complications they face are the main themes of this book. Looking at a wide range of cases where nongovernmental actors attempt to change norms and the practices of states, international organizations, and firms in the private sector-from debt restructuring to protecting human rights, from anti-dam projects in India to the prodemocracy movement in Indonesia-the authors compellingly depict international nongovernmental organizations and transnational social movements as considerable, emerging powers in international politics, initiating, facilitating, and directing the transformation of global norms and practices.

Contributors: Karen Brown Thompson, U of Minnesota; Charles T. Call, Brown U; Elizabeth A. Donnelly, Harvard U; Darren Hawkins, Brigham Young U; Thalia G. Kidder; Smitu Kothari; Paul J. Nelson, U of Pittsburgh; August Nimtz, U of Minnesota; Mark Ritchie, Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy; Jackie Smith, SUNY Stony Brook; Daniel C. Thomas, U of Illinois, Chicago.

Sanjeev Khagram is assistant professor of public policy at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. James V. Riker is coordinator of the Nonprofit Leadership and Democracy Project at the Union Institute in Washington, D.C. Kathryn Sikkink is professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Minnesota. ... Read more

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"In an era of military conflict and economic hardship, religious and political leaders adamantly speak in the language of crisis. Whether one attributes this public religious fervor to a response to the attacks of September 11, 2001, millennial hopes and fears, a sense of moral decay (generally based on either growing economic inequality or the ‘breakdown of the American family’), or a sign of the normal progression of the stages of history, the discourse of religious revival is increasingly prominent. And, as is amply evident in the United States and throughout the world, devout declarations of religious belief in the public sphere can bring intractable passions to politics."—from Chapter 1

What are the relationships among religion, politics, and narratives? What makes prophetic political narratives congenial or hostile to democratic political life? David S. Gutterman explores the prophetic politics of four twentieth- and twenty-first-century American Christian social movements: the Reverend Billy Sunday and his vision of "muscular Christianity"; Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and the Civil Rights movement; the conservative Christian male organization Promise Keepers; and the progressive antipoverty organization Call to Renewal.

Gutterman develops a theory based on the work of Hannah Arendt and others and employs this framework to analyze expressions of the prophetic impulse in the political narrative of the United States. In the process, he examines timely issues about the tense and intricate relationship between religion and politics. Even prior to George W. Bush’s "faith-based initiative," debates about abortion, family values, welfare reform, and environmental degradation were informed by religious language and ideas. In an interdisciplinary and accessible manner, Gutterman translates the narratives employed by American Christian social movements to define both the crises in the land and the path to resolving these crises. The book also explores the engagement of these prophetic social movements in contentious political issues concerned with sex, gender, sexuality, race, and class, as well as broader questions of American identity. ... Read more

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This book should be of interest to supplementary text for undergraduate courses in US history, US social history, social movements in the Twentieth Century, sociology and political science. ... Read more

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An eye for an eye, the balance of scales--for centuries, these and other traditional concepts exemplified the public's perception of justice. Today, popular culture, including television shows like Law and Order, informs the public's vision. But do age-old symbols, portrayals in the media, and existing systems truly represent justice in all of its nuanced forms, or do we need to think beyond these notions?

In Social Justice: Theories, Issues, and Movements, Loretta Capeheart and Dragan Milovanovic respond to the need for a comprehensive introduction to this topic. The authors argue that common conceptions of criminal justice--which accept, for the most part, a politically established definition of crime--are too limited. Instead, they show the relevancy of history, political economy, culture, critique, and cross-cultural engagement to the advancement of justice.

Drawing on contemporary issues ranging from globalization to the environment, this essential textbook--ideal for course use--encourages practitioners, reformists, activists, and scholars to question the limits of the law in its present state in order to develop a fairer system at the local, national, and global levels. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Excellent overview of social justice.
This book is really the only overview of the concept of social justice.It does a good job of reviewing the multiple ideas of what constitutes justice and discusses ideas of contemporary views of how best to achieve social justice.One point that I must make is that it is relatively value neutral, which is a rarity in many books of this type.The text does not presume that one particular social or political viewpoint has all the answers.Instead, it discusses each and tries to allow the reader to draw their own conclusions.Great introductory text for those interested in social justice. ... Read more

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Sociology/Psychology

A ground-breaking look at the social psychology of political movements.

Bridging psychology and sociology, this volume demonstrates the importance of self, identity, and self-esteem in analyzing and understanding social movements. The scholars gathered here provide a cohesive picture of how self and identity bear on social movement recruitment, activism, and maintenance. The result is a timely contribution to the social movements literature and to a greater understanding of the social and psychological forces at work within them.Contributors: Pamela J. Aronson, Indiana U; Roy F. Baumeister, Case Western Reserve U; Marilynn B. Brewer, Ohio State U; Lory Britt; Karen L. Dale; Kay Deaux, CUNY; Marga de Weerd, Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam; Michael Fraser; Viktor Gecas, Washington State U; David Heise, Indiana U; Howard B. Kaplan, Texas A&M; K. Jill Kiecolt, Virginia Tech ; Bert Klandermans, Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam; Xiaoru Liu, San Diego State U; Doug McAdam, Stanford U; Mark Muraven; Elizabeth C. Pinel, Pennsylvania State U; Anne Reid, Baruch College; Silke Roth, Bauhaus-University Weimar; Michael D. Silver; David Snow, U of Arizona; William B. Swann Jr., U of Texas, Austin; and Verta Taylor, Ohio State U.

Sheldon Stryker is distinguished professor of sociology at Indiana University. Timothy J. Owens is associate professor of sociology and Robert W. White is associate dean for academic affairs and associate professor of sociology, both at Indiana University-Purdue University.

Social Movements, Protest and Contention Series, volume 13

Translation Inquiries: University of Minnesota Press ... Read more

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This groundbreaking study sheds new light on the struggle to define the course of globalization. Synthesizing extensive research on transnational activism, Social Movements for Global Democracy shows how transnational networks of social movement activists -- democratic globalizers -- have worked to promote human rights and ecological sustainability over the predominant neoliberal system of economic integration.

Using case studies of recent and ongoing campaigns for global justice, Jackie Smith provides valuable insight into whether and how these activists are succeeding. She argues that democratic globalizers could be more effective if they presented a united front organized around a global vision that places human rights and ecological stability foremost and if they were to directly engage governments and the United Nations.

Illuminating the deep-seated struggles between two visions of globalization, Smith reveals a network of activists who have long been working to democratize the global political system.

Customer Reviews (1)

Important Book for Activists Thinking Globally as Well as Locally and Nationally
This book will be of interest primarily for purposeful activists looking for intellectual tools to enhance their effectiveness as well as academics who study social movements.

The book's principal value is threefold.It provides a loose intellectual framework to help activists assess and analyze ongoing social change efforts and identify more promising leverage points and strategies for future efforts.It dispels some mental traps that limit the effectiveness of some advocacy efforts, such as an assumption of a necessary incompatibility between focusing on local or national, versus international levels.Quite the contrary, the author maintains, and she illustrates this point nicely with examples.Third, it is well sourced and pulls together in one place many useful writings on these issues which activists and academics might otherwise have difficulty finding out about.

While the topic might sound dreamy to some, the author is hard-headed in having a clear and coherent concept of power.She does not argue against globalization, but rather sees two broad versions of it competing with one another for policy influence.One, the currently dominant vision of economic globalization, has long been philosophically relatively coherent.It has access to vast economic resources and with those, dominant political influence at the moment.The other is led by those she calls democratic globalizers.It is focused primarily on environmental and human rights issues broadly construed.It is diffuse, has been conceptually and programmatically lacking in coherence, and poor in financial resources.Smith's book is an informed, perceptive effort to help the latter group more effectively get its concerns addressed.

I'd offer two caveats.First, if you are someone who sees nothing especially problematic or troublesome about the consequences of economic globalization then nothing in this book will cause you to rethink your views on that. Author Jackie Smith, a professor at Notre Dame University, is a committed participant activist whose insights are, owing to that, incisive, well grounded in experience and direct observation, and of course partial to a point of view.Second, the prose is written in an academic voice and so may feel dry, and, related, also abstract, for some.The latter is because it *is* abstract, deliberately written as an effort to provide needed conceptual clarity to an area that has not gotten much of that kind of attention to date.I believe thoughtful activists can definitely benefit and recommend this book to their attention. ... Read more

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Paradigm shift?
Written by prominent scholars of social movements, this book explore the role of emotions in contentious politics. The first 3 chapters offer very interesting theoretical insights that somewhat lacked in previous accounts of emotions and social movements. The numerous case studies tackle a good variety of movements but I would argue that their theoretical and empirical quality varies greatly (emotions are not easily studied scientifically). Many argues that we are now witnessing a paradigm shift in social movements studies from rationality to culture and emotions; I am not convinced however that it is exactly what is going on. I would argue that if we are witnessing the dissolution of strong rationalist approaches, the resultant is not merely a return of pendulum toward the study of emotions but rather the emergence of numerous fields once muted by the dominant theories. One thing is sure however, the study of emotions in social movements is clearly one of the most interesting new avenues open to social scientists. ... Read more

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"In a commanding and detailed overview of the contemporary Middle East, Asef Bayat provides a unique account of the region today, in terms of ideologies, social movements and state power. Almost alone amongst scholars of the region in having expertise on both Iran and the Arab world, and with a deep commitment to combining regional knowledge with social theory, Bayat has produced a work of originality and quality. His exploration of the category 'post-Islamism.' when so many in the Middle East and the West stress the impact of Islamism itself, sets this work apart from so many prevailing, repetitive and introverted, discussions of the region."
--Professor Fred Halliday, London School of Economics, Fellow of the British Academy

"Unquestionably the best book I have read on Islamic trends in Iran and Egypt. Bayat, combining sociological sophistication with sharply detailed observation, offers hearty fare for those who are tired of the thin gruel served up elsewhere."
--Richard W. Bulliet, Columbia University, author of The Case for Islamo-Christian Civilization

"Asef Bayat's lucid and authoritative study sheds much-needed light on the vexed topic of Islam and democracy. Though Bayat sees no necessary hostility between the two, Muslims in the Middle East are in practice caught between authoritarian regimes, authoritarian Islamist oppositions, and foreign military occupation. Nonetheless, focusing on Iran and Egypt, he sees grounds for hope, mainly in post-Islamist social movements which may establish a presence in civil society sufficient to force concessions from the regimes. Since their problems have recently become our problems too, this excellent book should be very widely read."
--Michael Mann, University of California, Los Angeles, author of Sources of Social Power

Whether Islam is compatible with democracy is an increasingly asked question, but ultimately a misguided one. In this book, Asef Bayat proposes that democratic ideals have less to do with the essence of any religion than with how it is practiced. He offers a new approach to Islam and democracy, outlining how the social struggles of student organizations, youth and women's groups, the intelligentsia, and other social movements can make Islam democratic.

Making Islam Democratic examines in detail those social movements that have used religion to unleash social and political change, either to legitimize authoritarian rule or, in contrast, to construct an inclusive faith that embraces a democratic polity. It provides a fresh analysis of Iran's 1979 Islamic revolution--how it has evolved into the pervasive, post-Islamist reform movement of the early twenty-first century, and how it differed from Egypt's religious "passive revolution."

Focusing on events from the Iranian Revolution to the current day, with a comparative focus on Islamism, post-Islamism, and active religious expression across the region, Bayat explores the highly contested relationship between religion, politics, and the quotidian in the Middle East. His book provides an important understanding of the great anxiety of our time--the global march of "Muslim rage"--and offers a hopeful picture of a democratic Middle East. ... Read more

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Must-Read for all those interested in Democracy and Islam
The best book on the subject of Islam and Democracy. Finally an account that looks at how ordinary Muslims find ways to reconcile faith and democratic norms in their daily lives and fight for democratic change in Egypt and Iran. Carefully researched. The author lived for many years in both countries - so much of the book is based on primary sources in Persian and Arabic. For all those interested in the question of Islam and Democracy, it is a must-read. The introduction in particular is powerful.

A key acquisition for any college-level collection
MAKING ISLAM DEMOCRATIC: SOCIAL MOVEMENTS AND THE POST-ISLAMIC TURN is a key acquisition for any college-level collection strong in Middle East studies. It offers a focus on events from Iran's 1979 Islamic revolution to modern times, considering religion, politics and everyday life in the Middle East and providing a fine analysis of the contemporary Iranian revolution and its evolution. Asef Bayat is Academic Director of the International Institute for the Study of Islam in the Modern World, and lends authority and insight to his review of the modern Middle East world.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch ... Read more

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Analyzes the history and status of social movement and civil society theory within radical adult education and the Left. Challenging `civil societarianism' the author argues for a reconceptualization of Gramsci's use of civil society arguing that Gramsci did not advocate building civil society but proletarian hegemony. ... Read more

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What others are saying:
Endorsement From Peter Mayo Associate Professor, University of Malta:
John Holst helps bring the historical materialist tradition back into the reckoning in the literature on radical and transformative adult education. This inspiring book is a must for anyone interested in the area of adult education for social transformation as part of a larger and more comprehensive struggle for economic redistribution and social justice.

Endorsement From Tara J. Fenwick Associate Professor, University of Alberta:
Here is a bold and incisive argument, calling adult educators to account....Joining scholars like Allman and Youngman, Holst restores a robust vision of revolutionary praxis in a desperate world.

Endorsement From Mark Murphy, Ph.D. Lecturer in Education, University of Stirling, Scotland:
Those who espouse to be 'radical' adult educators need to get themselves a copy of John Holst's book. In a brave and unambiguous approach to civil society and social movements, Holst provides a compelling and lucid case for reasserting a Marxist socialist agenda for adult education.

Endorsement From Paula Allman author, Revolutionary Social Transformation:
Theoretically grounded in Marx, Gramsci, and Lenin, this is the book we've waited for and the book we need. The clear articulation of the relationship between social movements and civil society makes Holst's work absolutely essential reading for radical/critical educators.

Endorsement From Nelson Peery League of Revolutionaries for a New America:
This uncompromising, deeply theoretical, understandable polemic is needed for educators in classrooms, in unions, on the soap box or the internet.

Endorsement From Stephen Brookfield Distinguished Professor, University of St. Thomas, Minnesota:
Holst blends theoretical sophistication with activist momentum to argue for the enduring relevance of a socialist vision of adult education.

Endorsement From Kjell Rubenson, Ph.D. Professor of Adult Education, University of British Columbia:
A brilliant contribution to the radical tradition of adult education. Holst convincingly demonstrates how progressive adult education scholars have used the writings of Marx, Gramsci, and Freire in selective and problematic ways. The author provides a thoughtful and inspirational way of returning to the fundamental ideas of these thinkers. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (3)

The inspiring movement that never ended
Katsiaficas's book is a great read for anyone interested in anti-authoritarian movements both from the past and those we are witnessing in the present. Katsiaficas's focus is on the German Autonomen and the Italian autonomous movements, but he doesn't fall short on other currents either (armed struggle, etc.).

Throughout the book, Katsiaficas narrates these huge movements that built themselves spontaneously without dictates from organizations of any kind. The book is highly sympathetic to the passionate, intuitive capabilities of egalitarian organizing, coming to decisions through consensus and desirable ways of coexisting without the outmoded dogma of profound theory and iconoclasm.

I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in horizontal, autonomous and anarchist movements as it holds great significance for the present. The book is written in a clear manner and Katsiaficas is excellent both in his ability as a historian and a theoretician of social movements and the postmodern "condition" (of capitalism).

A fascinating excavation of obscured recent radical movements
Katsiaficas follows up on his book on the New Left and 1968 with this fascinating history that connects the dots between the upheavals of the late 60s and the anti-corporate globalization movements of the turn of the millenium. If you thought the 70s and 80s were a dead period for radical social movements, and if you thought revolution in the belly of the capitalist beast was impossible, check this book out and be inspired. The Autonomists waged a new struggle not to seize power from the state, but to check its influence and create free spaces.

The book looks first at the wave of militancy that swept Italy in the 70s after the "Hot Autumn" of 1969, in which workers and students organized outside the bounds of party politics and bureaucratic trade unions and fought for freedom and justice on their own terms. Though the movement ultimately lost its way in the adventurism of the underground guerrilla tactics of the Red Brigades, the Autonomista rocked the roots of the system in new and unexpected ways, with a militant popular presence in the streets.

Kstsiaficas continues his account with developments in Germany, where activists were inspired by the anarchistic organizing and militancy of the Italians. In Germany, a vibrant movement of squatters, feminists, anti-nuke, and anti-[...] grew up and mobilized tens of thousands for militant actions against nuclear power, gentrification, neo-[...] violence, and government repression. Even as they were combatting the worst ills of the system, the German autonomen were building up a thriving network of "dual power" alternative institutions: women's centers, housing and food coops, bars and cafes, alternative media, and financial institutions-- living proof that society based on cooperation, freedom and equality was possible. Katsiaficas details similar efforts in Holland and Denmark.

In the final sections of the book, Katsiaficas gets a little bogged down, engaging in some windy critiques of Hardt and Negri and Seyla Benhabib-- he is at his best when detailing the actions of the social movements and drawin lessons for the future.

Highly recommended for activists struggling in the developed countries-- there is much to be learned from what the Automomists did and how the state responded.

Keep an eye out for his upcoming third volume, on the Kwangju Uprising in South Korea in 1980.

clear and brilliant treatment of the subject
this is a major book, by a progressive thinker of long standing ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (4)

Still the best book on social movements
I use this book every year in my social movement class at the University of Texas at Austin. It provides an excellent overview of the social movement literature through the mid-1990s. More importantly, it provides a pathbreaking theoretical approach to social protest with rich empirical evidence.

My students are also very high on the book. It is a must read for all students of social movements.

Will be considered a classic by future generation
James Jasper offers one of the best books available on social movements. In "The Art of Moral Protest" it is mostly the cultural and emotional sides of social movements which is explored leaving aside the more traditional structural accounts of social movement theory. Jasper emphasize principally 4 dimensions of protest: culture, resources, strategies and biographies and divide movements into two categories: citizenship movements and post-citizenship movements. Interestingly however, the structure of the book do not follow these main dimensions and categories but propose a kind of linear logic of movements' evolution from the emotion (moral shock) which send people into action to the creation of a movement culture which help sustain participation to the relation between movements and the broader culture in which they evolve and try to change. An interesting last part deal with the author's own "normative view" of social movements exploring the pleasures associated with movement participation, the danger sometimes embodied in social movement (particularly those who harbour totalizing ideologies) but also the necessity of protest for our societies. The book is full of stories and historical details which help make sense of the arguments developed in the book and keep this theoretical book as interesting as a novel.

If I had to teach a course on social movements, I would probably chose two books for my students to read. The first one would be "Power in Movement" from Tarrow and the second one would be "The Art of Moral Protest". Many excellent books have been written on social movements but very few complement each other as well as these two books. They present the two current main branches of social movement studies.

If I had to find a few problems with the book it would be related to the reference system adopted. By placing all references and notes at the end of the book, the more interested reader easily get lost. It might sound silly at first, but since the book is quite thick it becomes quite annoying with time... especially when you are thrilled by the reading but still want to get that extra detail hidden at the end of the book.

The best recent book on social movements!
I loved this book. Anyone who likes the cultural side of politics will appreciate this book, Jasper's magnum opus. If you're writing a dissertation on social movements, you can't not read it.

A Pathbreaking Book
James Jasper's "The Art of Moral Protest" is one of the most important recent contributions to the scholarly literature on social movements and political and moral protest.The book's title signifies twoimportant ideas.First, Jasper wants to restore the moral dimension topolitical protest, which of late has been reduced by many scholars to thecalculated pursuit of material interests.Second, the book stresses the"artful" nature of protest, the fact, that is, that protestdoesn't simply arise in some mechanical fashion from "structural"preconditions, but involves choices and improvisation by thinking (andfeeling) individuals.Indeed, Jasper wants to reintegrate feelings andemotions, which scholars have studiously avoided in recent years, back intoour understanding of moral protest.And he emphasizes how specificindividuals with specific biographies (who, again, have been largely purgedfrom the scholarly literature) matter for protest.The book weaves apowerful critique of dominant ways of thinking about protest through aseries of fascinating studies of several movements and movementparticipants.In sum, this is an extremely important and pathbreakingbook.It should be read by anyone with an interest in politics, socialmovements, or protest. ... Read more

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For two decades, readers have navigated the approaches,theories, and controversies surrounding social movements with the thought-provoking guidance of Stewart, Smith, and Denton. In the Fourth Edition, the authors continue their synthesis, application, and extension of social movement persuasion. The new edition includes a chapter on identification and polarization and one on argument from conspiracy. The other chapters have been thoroughly updated and reorganized to emphasize the functions ofpersuasive acts and the symbolism created by movement members to explain their perspectives. Many examples are drawn from recent movements such as animal rights, militias, the religious right, and resistance to the globalization ofthe economy and production. The use of the Internet by movements provides yet another resource for projecting a particular worldview and another window for the study of social movements. ... Read more