Individualist anarchism

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    Individualist anarchism is the branch of anarchism that emphasizes the individual and their will over external determinants such as groups, society, traditions, and ideological systems. Although usually contrasted with social anarchism,[1] both individualist and social[1] anarchism have influenced each other. Some anarcho-capitalists claim anarcho-capitalism is part of the individualist anarchist tradition, while others disagree and claim individualist anarchism is only part of the socialist movement and part of the libertarian socialist tradition.[2] Economically, while European individualist anarchists are pluralists who advocate anarchism without adjectives and synthesis anarchism, ranging from anarcho-communist to mutualist economic types, most American individualist anarchists of the 19th century advocated mutualism, a libertarian socialist form of market socialism, or a free-market socialist form of classical economics.[3] Individualist anarchists are opposed to property that violates the entitlement theory of justice, that is, gives privilege due to unjust acquisition or exchange, and thus is exploitative,[4] seeking to "destroy the tyranny of capital,—that is, of property" by mutual credit.[5]

    Individualist anarchism represents a group of several traditions of thought and individualist philosophies within the anarchist movement. Among the early influences on individualist anarchism Josiah Warren (sovereignty of the individual), Max Stirner (egoism),[6] Lysander Spooner (natural law), Pierre-Joseph Proudhon (mutualism), Henry David Thoreau (transcendentalism),[7] Herbert Spencer (law of equal liberty)[8] and Anselme Bellegarrigue (civil disobedience).[9]

    Within anarchism, individualist anarchism is primarily a literary phenomenon[10] while social anarchism has been the dominant form of anarchism,[11][12][13][14] emerging in the late 19th century as a distinction from individualist anarchism after anarcho-communism replaced collectivist anarchism as the dominant tendency.[15] Individualist anarchism has been described by some as the anarchist branch most influenced by and tied to liberalism (specifically classical liberalism), or as a part of the liberal or liberal-socialist wing of anarchism — in contrast to the collectivist or communist wing of anarchism and libertarian socialism.[16][17][18] However, others suggest a softer divide, seeing individualist anarchists as sharing with social anarchists an opposition to state, capitalism and authority, while diverging (a) due to their evolutionary approach to change, preferring the creation of alternative institutions, such as mutual banks or communes, and (b) in their preference for a market-based system of distribution over the need-based system advocated by social anarchists.[19] The very idea of an individualist–socialist divide is also contested by those who argue that individualist anarchism is largely socialistic[20] and can be considered a form of individualist socialism, with non-Lockean individualism encompassing socialism.[21]

    1. ^ a b McKay, Iain. An Anarchist FAQ. AK Press. Oakland. 2008. pp 59-60.
    2. ^ McKay, Iain. An Anarchist FAQ. AK Press. Oakland. 2008. pp 22, 526.
    3. ^ Cite error: The named reference AFAQ was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
    4. ^ McKay, Iain, ed. (2012) [2008]. "Appendix: Anarchism and 'anarcho'-capitalism". An Anarchist FAQ. Vol. I/II. Stirling: AK Press. ISBN 9781849351225.
    5. ^ Dana, Charles Anderson. Proudhon and his "Bank of the People". p. 46.
    6. ^ Leopold, David (2006-08-04). "Max Stirner". In Zalta, Edward N. (ed.). Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy.
    7. ^ Díez 2006, pp. 31–32: "Paralelamente, al otro lado del atlántico, en el diferente contexto de una nación a medio hacer, los Estados Unidos, otros filósofos elaboraron un pensamiento individualista similar, aunque con sus propias especificidades. Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862), uno de los escritores próximos al movimiento de la filosofía trascendentalista, es uno de los más conocidos. Su obra más representativa es Walden, aparecida en 1854, aunque redactada entre 1845 y 1847, cuando Thoreau decide instalarse en el aislamiento de una cabaña en el bosque, y vivir en íntimo contacto con la naturaleza, en una vida de soledad y sobriedad. De esta experiencia, su filosofía trata de transmitirnos la idea que resulta necesario un retorno respetuoso a la naturaleza, y que la felicidad es sobre todo fruto de la riqueza interior y de la armonía de los individuos con el entorno natural. Muchos han visto en Thoreau a uno de los precursores del ecologismo y del anarquismo primitivista representado en la actualidad por Jonh Zerzan. Para George Woodcock, esta actitud puede estar también motivada por una cierta idea de resistencia al progreso y de rechazo al materialismo creciente que caracteriza la sociedad norteamericana de mediados de siglo XIX."
    8. ^ Freeden, Michael. Ideologies and Political Theory: A Conceptual Approach. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-829414-X. pp. 313–314
    9. ^ Woodcock 1962.
    10. ^ Skirda, Alexandre (2002). Facing the Enemy: A History of Anarchist Organization from Proudhon to May 1968. AK Press. p. 191.
    11. ^ Jennings, Jeremy (1993). "Anarchism". In Eatwell, Roger; Wright, Anthony (eds.). Contemporary Political Ideologies. London: Pinter. pp. 127–146. ISBN 978-0-86187-096-7. "[...] anarchism does not stand for the untrammelled freedom of the individual (as the 'anarcho-capitalists' appear to believe) but, as we have already seen, for the extension of individuality and community" (p. 143).
    12. ^ Gay, Kathlyn; Gay, Martin (1999). Encyclopedia of Political Anarchy. ABC-CLIO. p. 15. ISBN 978-0-87436-982-3. "For many anarchists (of whatever persuasion), anarcho-capitalism is a contradictory term, since 'traditional' anarchists oppose capitalism".
    13. ^ Morriss, Andrew (2008). "Anarcho-capitalism". In Hamowy, Ronald (ed.). The Encyclopedia of Libertarianism. SAGE; Cato Institute. pp. 13–14. doi:10.4135/9781412965811.n8. ISBN 978-1-4129-6580-4. OCLC 191924853. "Social anarchists, those anarchists with communitarian leanings, are critical of anarcho-capitalism because it permits individuals to accumulate substantial power through markets and private property."
    14. ^ Franks, Benjamin (August 2013). Freeden, Michael; Stears, Marc (eds.). "Anarchism". The Oxford Handbook of Political Ideologies. Oxford University Press: 393–394. doi:10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199585977.013.0001. Individualisms that defend or reinforce hierarchical forms such as the economic-power relations of anarcho-capitalism [...] are incompatible with practices of social anarchism. [...] Increasingly, academic analysis has followed activist currents in rejecting the view that anarcho-capitalism has anything to do with social anarchism.
    15. ^ McKay, Iain, ed. (2012). An Anarchist FAQ. Vol. II. Stirling: AK Press. ISBN 9781849351225. No, far from it. Most anarchists in the late nineteenth century recognised communist-anarchism as a genuine form of anarchism and it quickly replaced collectivist anarchism as the dominant tendency. So few anarchists found the individualist solution to the social question or the attempts of some of them to excommunicate social anarchism from the movement convincing.
    16. ^ Boyd, Tony; Harrison, Kevin, eds. (2003). "Marxism and Anarchism". Understanding Political Ideas and Movements. Manchester University Press. p. 251. ISBN 9780719061516.
    17. ^ McKay, Iain, ed. (2012). "Section G – Is Individualist Anarchism Capitalistic?". An Anarchist FAQ. Vol. II. Stirling: AK Press. ISBN 9781849351225.
    18. ^ Carson, Kevin (2017). "Anarchism and Markets". In Jun, Nathan J. (2017). Brill's Companion to Anarchism and Philosophy. BRILL. p. 81. ISBN 9789004356894.
    19. ^ McKay, Iain. An Anarchist FAQ. AK Press. Oakland. 2008. pp. 59.
    20. ^ Franks, Benjamin (August 2013). Freeden, Michael; Stears, Marc (eds.). "Anarchism". The Oxford Handbook of Political Ideologies. Oxford University Press: 385–404. doi:10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199585977.013.0001.
    21. ^ Wood, Ellen Meiksins (1972). Mind and Politics: An Approach to the Meaning of Liberal and Socialist Individualism. University of California Press. p. 7. ISBN 0520020294.