Synopsis "There Is No Free Society: Individualist Essays"
A "free society" is an impossibility. The libertarian and anarchist criticism of the State is not enough, since society will always remain, and social constraint is far more insidious; it: "fetters the individual with a thousand small, invisible ties, aiming to transform him into a good herdling." In these essays, Georges Palante not only demolishes the "social dogmas" but builds on their ruins, substituting hypothesis, sensibility and intuition for dogma, and in place of obedience to the social machine, he offers strategies by which the individual can retain its uniqueness and live in peace, while navigating around the crushing tentacles of state and society. Palante's critique of the hive mind, and his defense of individual liberty and the inner self, are more necessary than ever: the herd mentality seems well-placed for global domination through smart phones, Google and social media, all-pervasive advertising and political messaging, as well as thorough and constant electronic surveillance by governmental and commercial entities. The remnant of independent minds will resonate with what Palante has to say. Most of the selections offered here are presented in their first ever English editions: "Individual Consciousness and Social Consciousness", "Socialism and Individualism", "The Social Dogmatisms and the Liberation of the Individual", "Anarchism and Individualism", and "The Moral Antinomies between the Individual and Society".This second edition has been revised in its entirety, expanded with a new chapter, and now has a fully functional and linked table of contents.
