Book
Pirate Enlightenment, or, The real Libertalia / David Graeber.
Pirates have long lived in the realm of romance and fantasy, symbolizing risk, lawlessness, and radical visions of freedom. But at the root of this mythology is a rich history of pirate societies - vibrant, imaginative experiments in self-governance and alternative social formations at the edges of European empire.
Record details
- ISBN: 9780771004889 (hardcover)
- Physical Description: xxix, 175 pages ; 22 cm
- Edition: First English language edition.
- Publisher: [Toronto, Ontario] : Signal, an imprint of McClelland & Stewart, 2023.
Content descriptions
| General Note: | Originally published in French as Les pirates des lumières, ou, La véritable histoire de Libertalia: [Montreuil, France] : Libertalia Press, 2019. |
| Bibliography, etc. Note: | Includes bibliographical references. |
| Formatted Contents Note: | Pirates and mock kings of the Malagasy northeast -- The advent of the pirates from a Malagasy point of view -- Pirate enlightenment. |
| Language Note: | In English, translated from the French. |
Search for related items by subject
| Subject: | Pirates > Madagascar > History > 18th century. Utopias > Madagascar > History > 18th century. Libertalia. |
Available copies
- 1 of 1 copy available at Tsuga Consortium.
Holds
- 0 current holds with 1 total copy.
Show Only Available Copies
| Location | Call Number / Copy Notes | Barcode | Shelving Location | Status | Due Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lakeshore Branch | 910.45 Gra | 31681010307437 | NONFIC | Available | - |
- Random House, Inc.
One of The New Yorkerâs Best Books of 2023
The final book from David Graeber, the iconic intellectual, activist, and co-author of the New York Times bestseller, The Dawn of Everything.
Pirates have long lived in the realm of romance and fantasy, symbolizing risk, lawlessness, and radical visions of freedom. But at the root of this mythology is a rich history of pirate societiesâ vibrant, imaginative experiments in self-governance and alternative social formations at the edges of European empire.
In graduate school, David Graeber conducted ethnographic field research in Madagascar, producing what would eventually become a doctoral thesis on the islandâs magic, slavery, and politics. During this time, he encountered the Zana-Malata, an ethnic group made up of mixed descendants of the many pirates who settled on the island at the beginning of the eighteenth century. Pirate Enlightenment, or the True Libertalia, Graeber's final posthumous book, is the outgrowth of this early research, written while he and David Wengrow were working on what would become their major bestseller, The Dawn of Everything. In direct conversation with that work, Graeber explores how the proto-democratic, even libertarian practices of the Zana-Malata came to shape the Enlightenment project defined for too long as distinctly European. The result is a short but sweeping exploration of the non-European origins of what we consider to be âWesternâ thought, and an endeavor to recover forgotten forms of social and political order that gesture toward new, hopeful possibilities for the future.
