It may seem absurd to talk about revolution. But all the
alternatives assume the continuation of the present system, which is
even more absurd.
Best known for his translations of works by Guy Debord and the
Situationist International, Ken Knabb is himself the author of many
incisive radical texts. The Joy of Revolution is widely
considered his masterpiece. While there have been countless histories of
past revolutions and countless examinations of the many flaws of the
present society and the many methods proposed for reforming them, it
would be difficult to name a single book that more clearly and concisely
explores the problems and possibilities of a modern, situationist-type
revolution.
Following a brief overview of the absurdities of the present social system and the failures of past efforts to change it, The Joy of Revolution
examines the pros and cons of a wide range of radical tactics, first in
the context of “normal” or “ordinary” conditions, then in the very
different context of radical situations—those rare breakthroughs where
masses of people start to call everything into question and real change
becomes possible. The book then concludes with some speculations on how a
postrevolutionary global network of culturally diverse liberated
communities might work, and where we might go from there.
For this new edition, Ken has added some notes and updates to his
original work and appended a number of his more recent texts—detourned
comics; book reviews; a refutation of anarcho-primitivism; reports on
two remarkable radical movements in France; a series of texts and talks
on the Occupy movement (in which Ken was an enthusiastic participant);
observations on the coronavirus shutdown; and analyses of the
increasingly vicious and delirious Trump regime and the new forms of
popular resistance it has inspired.
