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Caliban and the Witch

Women, the Body and Primitive Accumulation
By Silvia Federici
Penguin Classics
Series: Penguin Modern Classics
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4.56 goodreads logo

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Check link for latest rating. ( 12,985 ratings, 1,442 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
Caliban and the Witch by Silvia Federici is an insightful examination of the transition from feudalism to capitalism in Europe, highlighting how women's roles and bodies were central to these changes. It explores the historical persecution of women during the witch hunts and argues that this violence was linked to the development of the capitalist economy. The book presents a compelling feminist interpretation of social transformation and its impact on gender politics.
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

You might enjoy this book if you're interested in exploring the historical connections between the witch hunts, the rise of capitalism, and the power dynamics affecting women. It offers a compelling analysis of gender and socio-economic changes in Europe and provides a thought-provoking perspective on the development of the modern world system.

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"Women, the body and primitive accumulation"--Cover.

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

From the peasant revolts to the Great European Witch Hunt—the crushing of occult traditions and women's reproductive freedom in the transition to capitalism.

A cult classic since its publication in the early years of this century, Caliban and the Witch is Silvia Federici's history of the body in the transition to capitalism. Moving from the peasant revolts of the late Middle Ages through the European witch-hunts, the rise of scientific rationalism, and the colonisation of the Americas, it gives a panoramic account of the often horrific violence with which the unruly human material of pre-capitalist societies was transformed into a set of predictable and controllable mechanisms.

It is a study of indigenous traditions crushed, of the enclosure of women's reproductive powers within the nuclear family, and of how our modern world was forged in blood.

Series: Penguin Modern Classics

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Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

Caliban and the Witch by Silvia Federici has been praised for offering a rewarding insight into the connections between modern patriarchy, the rise of nation states, and the transition from feudalism to capitalism. It is considered a groundbreaking work, making Federici an influential figure for young Marxists, political theorists, and a new generation of feminists. The book is both a passionate act of recovered memory and a powerful statement on humanity's future.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9780241532539

Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 29 July 2021

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Penguin Classics

Audience: General / adult, Tertiary education, Professional and scholarly

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 22.0mm

Width: 128.0mm

Height: 197.0mm

Weight: 293g

Pages: 400

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Best Sellers at Book Hero Best Selling Books Education & Reference Finance & Economics Finance & Investment History & Archaeology History & Military In Stock Books New Zealand's Best Selling Books Non-Fiction Penguin Books Penguin Classics Penguin Classics: Education & Reference Religion & Spirituality Series: Penguin Modern Classics Silvia Federici

About the Author

Silvia Federici is a feminist writer, teacher, and militant. In 1972, she was cofounder of the International Feminist Collective, which launche dthe Wages for Housework campaign. In the 1990s, after a period of teaching and research in Nigeria, she was active in the anti-globalization movement and the U.S. anti-death penalty movement. She is one of the cofounders of the Committee for Academic Freedom in Africa. From 1987 to 2005, she taught international studies, women's studies, and political philosophy courses at Hofstra University in Hempstead, NY. Her most recent books are Witches, Witch-Hunting, and Women and Re-enchanting the World (both 2018).

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