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Power in Movement: Social Movements and Contentious Politics (Cambridge Studies in Comparative Politics)
Books: Travel: Algeria: Item 5
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Power in Movement: Social Movements and Contentious Politics (Cambridge Studies in Comparative Politics)by Sidney Tarrow
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4 of 5 people found the following review helpful: A Strong Focus on Politicized Social Movements, February 22, 2004 Reviewer:doomsdayer520 (State College, PA USA) - Aside from some introductory matter on the various schools of thought in social movement research, here Tarrow mostly focuses on the influence of political structures on the formation of popular movements. This includes both external political and social influences, plus developments in the interactions between movements and the states/regimes they are confronting. Tarrow mostly uses movements that have had strong political effects in various nations (mostly Europe) as examples for his theories, and utilizes the concept of "cycles of contention" to elaborate on the evolution of movements over time. This specialized focus does lead to some interesting results, such as Tarrow's reconstruction of the disparate revolutions in Europe in 1848 as a widespread movement, or coverage of how states can co-opt a movement's message as a means of control. He has a nearly Marxist conception of such trends, but mostly avoids the tiresome pontificating that is usually fostered by Marxist theorizing. Another bonus is the final chapter of the main text, dealing with new phenomena in globalized or transnational social movements. The book does lose steam frequently as Tarrow gets distracted with long histories of the movements he uses as examples (including way too much repetitive information on the 1848 phenomenon), while his generally strong writing does occasionally lapse into diffuse professor-speak, which sadly is unavoidable in this field. But in the long run, this book offers mostly powerful coverage of politicized social movements, and the study thereof. [~doomsdayer520~]
Product Review
' a fine achievement. If others can build upon Tarrow's work with the same mixture of intellectual generosity, patience, and breadth, then the future of social movement scholarship is on firm ground.' Australian journal of Political Science
Book Description
Unlike political or economic institutions, social movements have an elusive power, but one that is no less real. This study surveys the history of the social movement, puts forward a theory of collective action to explain its surges and declines, and offers an interpretation of the power of movement that emphasizes its effects on personal lives, policy reforms and political culture. While covering cultural, organizational and personal sources of movements' power, the book emphasizes the rise and fall of social movements as part of political struggle and as the outcome of changes in political opportunity structure. This second edition has an entirely new chapter, major additions to the bibliography, new illustrative materials in many of the chapters and a new conclusion.
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