Civilized Rebels

Reviews / Votes

"[Dennis] Smith, in his extraordinary work, shows how a person in modern civilized times becomes a rebel, in what social context their rebellious attitude is shaped, and how certain extraordinary personal dispositions contribute to it. The author's observations show an analytical depth and innovation that is at once persuasive and attractive."

- Jiri Subrt, Department of Historical Sociology, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic.

"This is one of the most exciting books I have read in any social science in the last decade. It offers a root-and-branch revamping of the historical sociology in the study of different forms of resistance that accompany the decline of British empire and the retreat of the West from the global power."

- Sari Hanafi, Professor of Sociology, American University of Beirut, Lebanon.

"Building on his previous work on humiliation, Dennis Smith provides a fascinating account of how four international icons opposed arrogant regimes while navigating forced displacement, threats of humiliation, and expressions of admiration. His analysis offers compelling insights into the ways in which personal struggles relate to broader global contexts."

- Tina Uys, University of Johannesburg, South Africa.

"Dennis Smith's Civilized Rebels truly breaks new ground. Mixing the familiar (Wilde) with the less familiar (Amery), and the icon we now think we know (Mandela) with the one we hardly yet know (Suu Kyi), he explores the humanity of the displaced, who turn the state's attempts at humiliation into victory, not just by resisting but by refusing to be dehumanized. While you read this book, remember that thousands, perhaps millions of prisoners face these tortures and humiliations daily in so-called "civilized" societies. Smith reminds us where we might find civility in the face of modern incivility."

- Denis O'Hearn, Dean of Liberal Arts, University of Texas at El Paso, USA, and author of Living at the Edges of Capitalism: Adventures in Exile and Mutual Aid.

"This book is a very interesting intellectual experiment. It looks at the decline and fall of the British Empire, and of its inferior but over-ambitious rivals in Central Europe and South Africa, through biographical case studies of prominent victims, resisters and to some extent successful challengers involved in the process. The concluding reflections on Brexit and its accompanying delusions are timely and instructive."

- Johann P. Arnason, La Trobe University, Melbourne/Charles University, Prague.