Prison Memoirs of an Anarchist eBook Alexander Berkman
Download As PDF : Prison Memoirs of an Anarchist eBook Alexander Berkman 
This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the edition includes wireless delivery.
Prison Memoirs of an Anarchist eBook Alexander Berkman
The book is the account of the anarchist Alexander's Berkman's experiences in prison after his botched attempt to assassinate the industrialist Henry Clay Frick, the monster who "legally" slaughtered workers during the Homestead strike of 1892. Although Berkman never abandons his anarchist principles, he does soften his moral repugnance for criminals whose crimes were not motivated by political or humanitarian aims. If anything his friendships with prisoners deepen his anarchist insights about how exploitation and poverty are the principal causes of criminal behavior. Like his lover Emma Goldman, he spends his prison years advocating for the needs of his fellow inmates, often being punished for his advocacy. Berkman details the brutality, graft and corruption of the prison establishment.Anticipating Victor Frankl's Man's Search for Meaning, Berkman shows that those who view their punishment as a part of a larger purpose are best equipped to survive the inhuman treatment and conditions of prison life. The book is not all seriousness, however. It often has lighter moments, as when Berkman describes the quixotic attempt by his friends to tunnel into the prison to free him. Berkman's sub rosa argument, made to Goldman, that Leon Czologosz's assassination of President McKinley lacked redeeming social value, unlike his (Berkman's) attempt to assassinate Frick, while though interesting fails to be convincing. Those interested in the relationship of these remarkable people (Goldman and Berkman) will especially want to read that section.
The book is worth reading not merely for its historical value but for its literary qualities as well. It is intelligently written and difficult to put down. Although it is 518 pages, I read it all in three days. It is just that riveting.
Product details
|
Tags : Buy Prison Memoirs of an Anarchist: Read 18 Books Reviews - Amazon.com,ebook,Alexander Berkman,Prison Memoirs of an Anarchist,NON-CLASSIFIABLE
People also read other books :
- The Phoenix Born A Dance of Dragons Book 3 eBook Kaitlyn Davis
- Super Tiny Knitted Animals Joan Galllup Grimord 9780692382158 Books
- WADE Factors Wade Bloodgood 9780692833087 Books
- Pandora Box edition by Tushar Sen Literature Fiction eBooks
- The Sharp End Luck and Judgment Private Investigator Crime Thriller Series Book 3 edition by Solomon Carter Mystery Thriller Suspense eBooks
Prison Memoirs of an Anarchist eBook Alexander Berkman Reviews
Published 1912
Alexander Berkman was incarcerated from 1892 to 1906 (14 years of a 22 year sentence)at the Western Penitentiary (called `Riverside' because it's on the Allegheny River) in Pittsburgh, PA for an attempt on the life of Henry Frick, the man brought in by Andrew Carnegie to crush the steelworkers labor unions uprising in Homestead, Pennsylvania, which were occurring to prevent worker exploitation - wage plummeting. A native Russian Berkman adopted the Anarchistic ideologies of the time and went to work attempting to take a major shot at the labor industry - the monolith that was grinding man to dust only to make a profit on his back, from his sweat and toil - Henry Frick. What Berkman ultimately finds is that the prison system does the same thing - uses a man up to make his profit, then buries him without regard for his human dignity. There are many instances in the recount of this experience which will make you sad, guaranteed.
Be wary of spoilers
Beginning with the detailing of Berkman's travels to America just after 1890 then to Homestead, PA and his attempt on Frick's life (in Pittsburgh, I think), along with the espousing of many countless Anarchistic ideals, presented for the reasoning of the need for Attentat (an exemplary act or deed meant to be recreated by others, nearly always associated to political violence) the story winds it's way to Berkman's trial.
Initially determined to die for the cause Berkman describes his refusal of legal counsel and does an excellent job portraying his young, linear, good / bad, black / white, cause and effect type of thinking. A youth with a psychic horizon about as developed as it probably should have been, but without need to be spoken - still deserved of broadening. In court Berman states `I am an Anarchist I do not believe in man-made law, designed to enslave and oppress humanity.' (1206) Then he got 22 years. The remainder of work is where the real sociological work takes place, where we see Berkman grow as a person, while he witnesses his fellows and suffers himself in the pit of hell. A place where nepotism, favoritism and distrust generally reign, but then at times unexpected - the human element represents itself.
Berman expects to go crazy within the 22 years, thereby to keep himself sane he naturally interacts with the population. In forming a plan to escape the prison he gradually befriends the prison chaplain. He receives his escape through the chaplain's library - and at another point the Warden mentions that Berkman must have checked out just about every book that was in the prison library. Oscillating between dying for the cause, dying because he's helpless, surviving to spite the system or surviving to better morality we slowly begin to encounter the injustices / idiosyncrasies of the penal system, for instance
Censored mail, watching a man die and then being reprimanded then punished for seeking him help, the `basket' cell, solitary in the dungeon with bull-ring attachments bit into the wall, drugs, secret food exchange or extravagance, misappropriated funding (library didn't get new books, despite budget reports), `punks' and other aspects of the sexual trade in prison, exercise and food restrictions, forced labor which then wasn't labeled to represent that it was made by prisoners, blatant disregard for governmental laws and regulation, lack of adequate medical treatment and attention, intentionally mis-coaching insane criminals while at trial, inferiorities in the moral character & intellectual capabilities of the prisons guards.
Arises the question of principles. How firmly should a man hold principle? Berkman was steadfast in not seeking an appeal or pardon, for to do so would be a compromise of principle on his behalf - begging the system to forget what he'd done. Slowly, over time and after a failed escape attempt (a tunnel dug and commissioned by fellow Anarchists), Berkman comes around to the idea of appeal as his sentence whittles down.
Meeting his friends Nold and Bauer, also being kept as revolutionists and conspirators, a newspaper starts called `Prison Blossoms'. Friends come and go, come again and go crazy and end up on `crank row', people are moved about the prison, which affords Berkman the opportunity to detail the floor plans and any neat tricks he comes to learn about the wards. During this time Berkman is labeled a threat to the convivence of the prison and he spends a significant amount of time in solitary confinement, more than a year at one point. There are also lies that surround what is presented and seen to inspectors and investigators or anybody on the board, much of what happens occurs much less dramatically when the authorities are watching the authorities. A board of charities visit and a possible pardon is turned aside as Berkman is in solitary, placed there under Warden ES Wright's command, for possibly invented charges.
Berkman witnesses the gradual rise in popularity of electric light in the prison, as opposed to tallow candles which the prisoners previously used to light their rooms. The allowance of physical exercise, yard time, and it's scarcity in prison.
Watching his friends die cruel, often miserable deaths without any medical assistance or even empathy from the doctors or guards, and suffering through his own privations, confinements, straight-jacketing to a bed and constant suspicion Berkman decides that as his terms end is approaching that he'll serve and finish out his duty in the workhouse - another 10 months on top of his 13 year prison term. We see a vast change in the man, as he initially enters the prison condemning his fellow man, as scourge, below himself and below free men, but he comes to empathize with them, to struggle with them, and yes to even bond with them through suffering in the prison and through the legal system, at the highest of humanistic senses.
Quotes
`The presence of death daunts the thought of self-destruction. Ever stronger asserts itself the love of life; the will to be roots deeper.' (2882)
`How terrible man's ignorance, that forever condemns itself to be scourged by its own blind fury!' (4817)
`How insignificant it all is in the eye of reason, how small and puny life and all it's pain and travail!' (4881)
`The real despotism of republican institutions is far deeper, more insidious, because it rests on the popular delusion of self-government and independence. That is the subtle source of democratic tyranny, and, as such, it cannot be reached with a bullet.' (5114)
Guard to prisoners `I saw you sneak in there an hour ago, and you've been chawin' the rag to beat the band. Think this a barroom, do you?' (5212)
`... I believe most crimes would be found to be misdirected energy - misdirected because of false standards, wrong environment, and unenlightened self-interest.' (5304)
`Restraint and penal methods can't reform. The very idea of punishment precludes betterment.' (5308)
`The narrower your mental horizon, the more you dwell upon your personal troubles and wrongs... illiterates go insane with confinement.' (5349)
`All life is a multiplied pain; its highest expressions, love and friendship, are sources of the most heart-breaking sorrow.' (5403)
`You can, in a measure, escape the sordidness of life only by living for something higher.' (5413)
A powerful memoir of Alexander's Berkman's experience in prison after attempting to assassinate industrialist Henry Clay Frick. It's not a short book but I found myself tearing through it in a couple of days. Just amazing.
The book is the account of the anarchist Alexander's Berkman's experiences in prison after his botched attempt to assassinate the industrialist Henry Clay Frick, the monster who "legally" slaughtered workers during the Homestead strike of 1892. Although Berkman never abandons his anarchist principles, he does soften his moral repugnance for criminals whose crimes were not motivated by political or humanitarian aims. If anything his friendships with prisoners deepen his anarchist insights about how exploitation and poverty are the principal causes of criminal behavior. Like his lover Emma Goldman, he spends his prison years advocating for the needs of his fellow inmates, often being punished for his advocacy. Berkman details the brutality, graft and corruption of the prison establishment.
Anticipating Victor Frankl's Man's Search for Meaning, Berkman shows that those who view their punishment as a part of a larger purpose are best equipped to survive the inhuman treatment and conditions of prison life. The book is not all seriousness, however. It often has lighter moments, as when Berkman describes the quixotic attempt by his friends to tunnel into the prison to free him. Berkman's sub rosa argument, made to Goldman, that Leon Czologosz's assassination of President McKinley lacked redeeming social value, unlike his (Berkman's) attempt to assassinate Frick, while though interesting fails to be convincing. Those interested in the relationship of these remarkable people (Goldman and Berkman) will especially want to read that section.
The book is worth reading not merely for its historical value but for its literary qualities as well. It is intelligently written and difficult to put down. Although it is 518 pages, I read it all in three days. It is just that riveting.
0 Response to "[DA6]≡ Download Gratis Prison Memoirs of an Anarchist eBook Alexander Berkman"
Post a Comment