I love Emma Goldman. My first contact with her writing was in her memoirs (in 2 parts). I’ve put her on my comps list – we’ll see if she stays (I need to trim both my lists by at least five texts). She is a phenomenal writer – as she apparently was an orator – her take no prisoners and no shit style is truly engaging. Anyhow, I’m reading selections from the work: Anarchism and other essays. She defines anarchism as:
“The philosophy of a new social order based on liberty unrestricted by man-made law; the theory that all forms of government rest on violence, and are therefore wrong and harmful, as well as unnecessary” (50).
In the title essay, she discusses the difficulty of disseminating new ideas in face of the tenacious hold of tradition on the hearts and minds of humans. Goldman observes,
“The most violent element in society is ignorance” (49).
“It requires less mental effort to condemn than to think…Rather than to go to the bottom of any given idea, to examine into its origin and meaning, most people will either condemn it altogether, or rely on some superficial or prejudicial definition of non-essentials” (50).
I have this experience often.
According to Goldman, anarchism has declared war on Religion, Property and Government. I love this quote (can you tell I’m a fallen Catholic?):
“Religion! How it dominates man’s mind, how it humiliates and degrades his soul. God is everything, man is nothing, says religion. But out of that nothing God has created a kingdom so despotic, so tyrannical, so cruel, so terribly exacting that naught but gloom and tears and blood have ruled the world sinces gods began. Anarchism rouses man to rebellion against this black monster. Break your mental fetters, says Anarchism to man, for not until you think and judge for yourself will you get rid of the dominion of darkness, the greatest obstacle to all progress” (53).
In light of all the religious fundies (Christian or Islamic – take your pick) out to “save” and “purify” the world lately, this quote rings particularly clear. Would that more people could think. Period.