Russel Brand’s rallying cry to start a revolution combined with the perspective of David Graeber on what a revolution truly is, allows us to see how a new wave of revolutions are occurring in this modern day and age. By firstly looking at the ways that revolutions have changed not only our own perspective of history but also the lasting affect that each revolution has on a global scale. The concept of a revolution and whether or not it is successful can be seen through different perspectives, according to Graeber some see the social revolution that occurred in the 60’s as a failure while others see it as having a lasting affect on U.S. military strategy and involvement for the past 50 years. The notion of failure or success in regards to revolutions is but a matter of perspective, especially when it comes to social and political revolutions, revolutions of intellectual purpose are much harder to see their goals achieved in the present but instead hold for change in the future. For instance we have Russel Brand who urges for a new wave of social revolutions throughout the world, he does not preach for a violence but for change on a grand scale much like the French or Russian revolutions. Brand’s message to the world is that the current way that society is operated is no longer working and needs to be changed in order for human-kind to survive. His disdain for the current system is evident in both his article and his interview and the way that he presents his revolution, yet much like the social and intellectual revolution of the 60’s we might not be able to see the lasting affects of Brand’s rallying call. The idea of revolution although at times seems like a violent incident as is evident in the past, for example American Revolution, French Revolution, Haitian Revolution, although these are but a few examples of the ways that revolutions can become violence incarnate, it does not mean that all revolutions must involve violence. As it is seen the new wave of social movements where violence is not used as tool to propagate the agenda of the movement, on the contrary these movements try to avoid violence in all regards. As revolutions and our understanding of revolution change, we may one day see Brand much like the charismatic revolutionary leader Che, even if that does not come true one thing is revolutions will continue to occur and evolve alongside as society. It is up to us all on whether to join them or stand at the way side as society and the world changes around us.
S. Yes, the question of when a revolution is “successful” is interesting–and perhaps surprisingly difficult to answer. Graeber’s take on the social protests of the 1960s is provocative, I think: he suggests that they had far more influence than we give them credit for, at least if we measure that by the reaction of those in power.
I definitely agree and like how you say that we are in a period where a new wave of revolutions are out there, and how this consequently shapes the way we think of the world and of history. Your blog asks us to think more deeply about revolutions, what they mean, how to categorize them, whether to consider them as a success or failure, and how they impact our lives. I especially like, for example, how you mention that not all revolutions (have to be) violent. Ultimately what all of this shows are two things: 1) that revolutions are subjective and based on people’s perspective, 2) revolutions are about a personal story.