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A review by jensbrede
Chomsky on Anarchism by Barry Pateman, Noam Chomsky
3.0
I've always been very much opposed to being a fan of anybody or being awestruck, but if I were to have a role model, it might as well be Noam Chomsky.
I hope to get around to a more sophisticated review of this particular collection in the future for now I can just say you get what you expect. It's Chomsky, in his calm and analytic manner sharing his thoughts with anyone who cares to listen.
The collection tends to get a bit redundant as some points are reiterated over again but I especially enjoyed the first two pieces and in particular Chomsky's dissection of the Spanish revolution but I can see that many casual readers will be put off by it as it is presented in a general academic manner, using lots of citations and various sources to underline the central claims. When one just cares about Chomsky's view and not the foundation of it this will seem cumbersome.
Nonetheless, Chomsky never fails to drive home that "it’s very natural for intellectuals to try to make simple things look difficult".
One only needs to recall principles such as Occam's Razor or think of Einstein's quest for simplicity in scientific theory - It can scarcely be denied that the supreme goal of all theory is to make the irreducible basic elements as simple and as few as possible without having to surrender the adequate representation of a single datum of experience" - to feel reassured that when some hides behind the complexity of a matter, he, at best, hasn't really understood it, or, even worse, is deliberately trying to mislead someone. Keeping these simple truths in mind, will get one a long way indeed, when judging the opinions and necessities expressed by experts and intellectuals in various subject matters.
Chomsky is a living example when it comes to breaking down the seemingly complex, into very simple terms, that are readily understood by anyone who cares to listen.
I hope to get around to a more sophisticated review of this particular collection in the future for now I can just say you get what you expect. It's Chomsky, in his calm and analytic manner sharing his thoughts with anyone who cares to listen.
The collection tends to get a bit redundant as some points are reiterated over again but I especially enjoyed the first two pieces and in particular Chomsky's dissection of the Spanish revolution but I can see that many casual readers will be put off by it as it is presented in a general academic manner, using lots of citations and various sources to underline the central claims. When one just cares about Chomsky's view and not the foundation of it this will seem cumbersome.
Nonetheless, Chomsky never fails to drive home that "it’s very natural for intellectuals to try to make simple things look difficult".
One only needs to recall principles such as Occam's Razor or think of Einstein's quest for simplicity in scientific theory - It can scarcely be denied that the supreme goal of all theory is to make the irreducible basic elements as simple and as few as possible without having to surrender the adequate representation of a single datum of experience" - to feel reassured that when some hides behind the complexity of a matter, he, at best, hasn't really understood it, or, even worse, is deliberately trying to mislead someone. Keeping these simple truths in mind, will get one a long way indeed, when judging the opinions and necessities expressed by experts and intellectuals in various subject matters.
Chomsky is a living example when it comes to breaking down the seemingly complex, into very simple terms, that are readily understood by anyone who cares to listen.