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Recommendations based on Imagined Communities: Reflections on the Origin and Spread of Nationalismby Benedict Anderson
* statistically, based on millions of data-points provided by fellow humans
Discipline and Punish: The Birth of the Prison
by Michel Foucault
Examines the emergence of the modern prison system and its effects on society.
Librarian note: an alternate cover for this edition can be found, here,. Barely two hundred and fifty years ago a man condemned of attempting to assassinate the King of France was drawn and quartered ... (Goodreads)
Orientalism
by Edward W. Said
Exploration of the Middle East through the West's prejudiced lens.
More than three decades after its first publication, Edward Said's groundbreaking critique of the West's historical, cultural, and political perceptions of the East has become a modern classic. In ... (Goodreads)
The Wretched of the Earth
by Frantz Fanon
A political analysis of colonialism and its effects on the global underclass.
A distinguished psychiatrist from Martinique who took part in the Algerian Nationalist Movement, Frantz Fanon was one of the most important theorists of revolutionary struggle, colonialism, and ... (Goodreads)
Eichmann in Jerusalem: A Report on the Banality of Evil
by Hannah Arendt
Exploration of the trial of Adolf Eichmann, examining the nature of evil and its implications.
Originally appearing as a series of articles in The New Yorker , Hannah Arendt’s authoritative and stunning report on the trial of Nazi leader Adolf Eichmann sparked a flurry of debate upon its ... (Goodreads)
The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism
by Max Weber
Examines the relationship between Protestantism and the rise of capitalism, arguing that religious beliefs influenced economic behavior.
The Protestant ethic — a moral code stressing hard work, rigorous self-discipline, and the organization of one's life in the service of God — was made famous by sociologist and political economist ... (Goodreads)
The Communist Manifesto
by Karl Marx
A treatise on the fundamental principles of communism, and its role in society.
A rousing call to arms whose influence is still felt today Originally published on the eve of the 1848 European revolutions, The Communist Manifesto is a condensed and incisive account of the ... (Goodreads)
Illuminations: Essays and Reflections
by Walter Benjamin
Collection of philosophical and literary essays on a range of topics.
Essays and reflections from one of the twentieth century’s most original cultural critics, with an introduction by Hannah Arendt . Walter Benjamin was an icon of criticism, renowned for his insight ... (Barnes & Noble)
The Origins of Totalitarianism
by Hannah Arendt
Analysis of the rise of totalitarian regimes in Europe, and their consequences for the modern world.
Hannah Arendt's definitive work on totalitarianism and an essential component of any study of twentieth-century political history The Origins of Totalitarianism begins with the rise of anti-Semitism ... (Goodreads)
The History of Sexuality, Volume 1: An Introduction
by Michel Foucault
Examination of the power dynamics and social constructions of sexual behavior.
Michel Foucault offers an iconoclastic exploration of why we feel compelled to continually analyze and discuss sex, and of the social and mental mechanisms of power that cause us to direct the ... (Goodreads)
Capital: A Critique of Political Economy, Volume 1
by Karl Marx
Analysis of capitalism, exploring its economic and social systems.
Capital , one of Marx's major and most influential works, was the product of thirty years close study of the capitalist mode of production in England, the most advanced industrial society of his day. ... (Goodreads)
Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies
by Jared Diamond
Tracing the origins of human civilizations through the lens of geography, technology, and biology.
"Diamond has written a book of remarkable scope ... one of the most important and readable works on the human past published in recent years." Winner of the Pulitzer Prize and a national bestseller: ... (Goodreads)
A People's History of the United States
by Howard Zinn
An examination of American history from a perspective of marginalized people.
In the book, Zinn presented a different side of history from the more traditional "fundamental nationalist glorification of country". Zinn portrays a side of American history that can largely be seen ... (Goodreads)
Pedagogy of the Oppressed
by Paulo Freire
Analysis of the educational system, advocating a pedagogy of liberation.
First published in Portuguese in 1968, Pedagogy of the Oppressed was translated and published in English in 1970. The methodology of the late Paulo Freire has helped to empower countless impoverished ... (Goodreads)
The Social Contract
by Jean-Jacques Rousseau
Exploration of the relationship between a government and its citizens, and the rights of individuals.
"Man is born free; and everywhere he is in chains." These are the famous opening words of a treatise that has not ceased to stir vigorous debate since its first publication in 1762. Rejecting the ... (Goodreads)
The Prince
by Niccolò Machiavelli
A timeless political treatise on the art of acquiring and maintaining power.
Machiavelli needs to be looked at as he really was. Hence: Can Machiavelli, who makes the following observations, be Machiavellian as we understand the disparaging term? 1. So it is that to know the ... (Goodreads)
The Republic
by Plato
A philosophical discourse on justice, examining morality, politics, and virtue.
Presented in the form of a dialogue between Socrates and three different interlocutors, this classic text is an enquiry into the notion of a perfect community and the ideal individual within it. ... (Goodreads)
Between the World and Me
by Ta-Nehisi Coates
A letter to his son, exploring the realities of racism in America.
“This is your country, this is your world, this is your body, and you must find some way to live within the all of it.” In a profound work that pivots from the biggest questions about American ... (Goodreads)
Homage to Catalonia
by George Orwell
A first-hand account of the Spanish Civil War, and the political conflicts in the 1930s.
In 1936 George Orwell travelled to Spain to report on the Civil War and instead joined the fight against the Fascists. This famous account describes the war and Orwell’s own experiences. Introduction ... (Goodreads)
The Argonauts
by Maggie Nelson
A personal exploration of gender, sexuality, and love, weaving together memoir, criticism, and philosophy.
An intrepid voyage out to the frontiers of the latest thinking about love, language, and family. Maggie Nelson's The Argonauts is a genre-bending memoir, a work of "autotheory" offering fresh, ... (Goodreads)
Beyond Good and Evil
by Friedrich Nietzsche
A philosophical exploration of morality and truth, challenging conventional morality and religious beliefs.
Friedrich Nietzsche's Beyond Good and Evil is translated from the German by R.J. Hollingdale with an introduction by Michael Tanner in Penguin Classics. Beyond Good and Evil confirmed Nietzsche's ... (Goodreads)
The Complete Persepolis
by Marjane Satrapi
Autobiographical tale of a girl growing up in Iran during the Islamic Revolution.
Here, in one volume: Marjane Satrapi's best-selling, internationally acclaimed graphic memoir. Persepolis is the story of Satrapi's unforgettable childhood and coming of age within a large and loving ... (Goodreads)
Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood
by Marjane Satrapi
Autobiographical account of a young girl's experience of the Iranian Revolution.
Note: The summary of the English editions of the novel is divided into two sections, one for each book. Persepolis 1 begins by introducing Marji, the ten-year-old protagonist. Set in 1980, the novel ... (Wikipedia)
Capitalist Realism: Is There No Alternative?
by Mark Fisher
Critique of late capitalism, exploring the oppressive power of neoliberalism.
After 1989, capitalism has presented itself as the only realistic political-economic system. What effects has this “capitalist realism” had on work, culture, education and mental health? Is it ... (Goodreads)
Mythologies
by Roland Barthes
A collection of essays that deconstructs the myths of modern society, revealing their hidden meanings and cultural significance.
"No denunciation without its proper instrument of close analysis," Roland Barthes wrote in his preface to Mythologies . There is no more proper instrument of analysis of our contemporary myths than ... (Goodreads)
Democracy in America
by Alexis de Tocqueville
A study of the political and social structure of the United States and its implications.
Democracy in America has had the singular honor of being even to this day the work that political commentators of every stripe refer to when they seek to draw large conclusions about the society of ... (Goodreads)
The Death and Life of Great American Cities
by Jane Jacobs
Exposes the flaws of urban planning, advocating for a more organic approach.
A direct and fundamentally optimistic indictment of the short-sightedness and intellectual arrogance that has characterized much of urban planning in this century, The Death and Life of Great ... (Goodreads)
Thus Spoke Zarathustra
by Friedrich Nietzsche
A philosophical treatise exploring morality, religion, and the meaning of life.
Politics
by Aristotle
Analysis of the structure and nature of governments and the pursuit of justice.
What is the relationship of the individual to the state? What is the ideal state, and how can it bring about the most desirable life for its citizens? What sort of education should it provide? What ... (Goodreads)
King Leopold's Ghost
by Adam Hochschild
A harrowing account of the colonization of the Congo and the exploitation of its people.
In the 1880s, as the European powers were carving up Africa, King Leopold II of Belgium seized for himself the vast and mostly unexplored territory surrounding the Congo River. Carrying out a ... (Goodreads)
Camera Lucida: Reflections on Photography
by Roland Barthes
An exploration of the nature of photography and its power to evoke emotion.
A graceful, contemplative volume, Camera Lucida was first published in 1979. Commenting on artists such as Avedon, Clifford, Mapplethorpe, and Nadar, Roland Barthes presents photography as being ... (Goodreads)
