Anarchism & Anthropology

We have on our first guest, the disillusioned Leninist Evan who talks about anarchist anthropology! Evan’s had his name dropped on the show before so we figured it was time we had him on to defend himself. Matt is still in a state of nervousness about looking after a one year old because he has not read as many books as he should have. We recorded this episode in baby’s room which made Evan eyeball the crib for a post-pod nap.

Phil gives us a This Day in History challenge. Matt and Evan wonder how May 11, 1820 and 1997 are connected. They had no idea. In 1820 the HMS Beagle, Charles Darwin’s ship set sail and in 1997 Deep Blue beat Gary Kasparov at chess. Answer: connected to evolutionary theory, progression or one might argue regression. You gotta watch Phil, always slipping in those connections.

Evan regales us with some library stories. No spoiler, but they were better than we thought! Turns out library stank sticks with you like a whopper and somehow Phil has never had a dull moment in a library. After the show Evan is planning his own treasure hunt in the film studies and gastronomy sections of the stacks to find our squirrely hiding places.

 

Anarchism & Anthropology (12:48)

What the heck is anarchist anthropology and who is this really interesting sounding guy, David Graeber? Evan gives the ‘I know nothing’ disclaimer and a brief backgrounder. He explains the intersection of anarchism, continental philosophy and anthropology: horizontal approaches to explore ‘everyday life’. Evan came at anarchism from disillusionment with Marxist-Leninism as a youth and an interest in continental philosophy. Everyone’s understanding of Marx was made easier by working low wage, alienating jobs. Evan met Matt at one of those jobs, who was later strong-armed into Matt’s Anth-100 tutorial group. It was like having a teaching reviewer in each class. The best feedback Evan gave: Matt teaches in a chaotic, discursive style. He has since tried to bring more structure and make connections clearer (let us know if he is succeeding).

Evan defines anarchism as active, a creative on the ground political action that is designed to be adaptable. David Graeber resists the label of ‘Anarchist-Anthropologist’ because it is not ‘who’ you are but ‘what you do’. Matt, Phil and Evan make Marxist connections, it being understood as an active and widely applicable philosophy. “Two Cheers for Anarchism” by James C Scott is Evan’s first recommendation. It uses a vernacular methodological approach to anthropology, which is essentially an horizontal or non-top down perspective. Examples: gardens in Guatemala, Henry Ford’s rubber plantation disaster and the worn paths at college campuses. This reminds Matt of emergent theory, trying to not impose theoretical frameworks before entering the field. The vernacular definition of anarchism seems to not match up with Evan’s definition. But where is the politics? According to Evan, experience is where politics should emerge, not the other way around. This lived, experiential approach is connected to continental philosophy. Does Graeber focus on this or is this Evan’s analysis? Evan, are you an anarchist? He is but it doesn’t make any difference. “If you are not a Utopian, you are a Schmuck” as Graeber the optimistic anarchist says. The anarchist ideal is therefore all around us, everywhere, organic and existing in our relationships.    

Black Block vs. Optimistic Anarchism? Direct action is what anarchism can be boiled down to, are these actions purely symbolic or effective? Violence is more symbolic, Evan argues. Aesthetics of practicing (praxis) anarchism: Evan argues that the Black Block is dependent on peaceful protests. It scares Matt that peaceful protesters get lumped in with black block ‘extremists’ even if their violence is intended to be symbolic. Evan makes a great connection with Marcel Mauss and the Gift, a hugely influential book because it describes worlds that are alternatives. Matt connects Techniques of the Body by Mauss, Evan also appreciates this as he was a clunky body person just like Matt.

Neo-Liberalism: Anarchism should be seen as a methodological alternative, relying on cooperation and collaboration in our political actions. Phil brings in Trump and his atrocious policies and the French election results, asking what Evan thinks about all this? Evan appreciated the Trotskyite Mélenchon, Matt argues that the extreme right is small but vocal and that their messaging is uncomfortable because cultural norms have changed. Evan points to the recent turn-away from market economics. Phil connects ‘anger’ and the right, which is just as legitimate as any movement from the left but Evan argues that the left is more concerned with aesthetics then direct political action. Evan talks to “Direct Action and Ethnography” by D. Graeber, set in Quebec in 2001 (please email us David…).

Populism and the privileged right: Trump the anarchist, Trudeau the opportunist-anarchist? The president is ‘just like me’ and this worries Matt. Trump is selling how uncouth he is and Americans want to see this even though they are born into privilege. A Return to praxis, or the final nail in the coffin: If you want to be an anarchist, what should you do? Evan believes in further education, asking questions and making connections.

Some books by Graeber to read: “Fragments of an anarchist anthropology”, “Direct Action and Ethnography”. And, “Two Cheers for Anarchism” by James C Scott. Finally, a Podcast: The Intercept by Glen Greenwald and Jeremy Scahill.

 

Recommendations (50:36)

Astonishing Legends: a podcast that Matt describes as ‘rational conspiracy theory’ where they really dig into (pun totally intended) the research. Some notable episodes: Oak Island and the Knights of the Golden Cross.

On the Media: hosted by Brooke Gladstone and Bob Garfield is a social sciency take on media analysis which is always current and always relevant.

A blog by writer Sam Kriss

The Hockey PDOcast: is an analytics driven hockey show produced and hosted by a Canadian Dimitri Fillipovich. That’s pretty cool there then eh?

How to Write a Thesis in Three Years: A Practical Guide: a book by Stephen Harrison. Phil’s a little preoccupied by that whole thing at the moment.

 

Concluding thought: “Changes and progress very rarely are gifts from above. They come out of struggles from below” (Noam Chomsky, 2008).

 

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Music: Song "Soul Challenger" appearing on "Cullahnary School" by Cullah

Available at: http://www.cullah.com

Under CC BY SA license http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/