A-Infos (en) France, UCL AL #361 - Culture - Read: Pierre Ansart, "Birth of Anarchism, Outline of a Sociological Explanation of Proudhonism" (ca, de, fr, it, pt, tr)[machine translation]

Should one read Pierre Ansart's book on Proudhon? If we refer to the 
latter, reflexes of rejection might emerge, particularly in relation to 
his stance on women; if we turn to Marx's critique of him, the 
condemnation of the petit bourgeois is unequivocal. But with a little 
intellectual curiosity, overcoming these initial repulsions allows us to 
discover another reading of Pierre-Joseph. In this work, Pierre Ansart 
offers a sociological approach to Proudhon's work, a rereading in light 
of the economic realities of the 1830s and beyond. The book, entitled 
"Birth of Anarchism," only addresses this issue at the end. The first 
part paints an economic portrait of France at the time, its rurality, 
the emergence of the first capitalist concentrations, and, in between, 
the workshops and crafts so dear to Proudhon. These socioeconomic 
changes and their consequences for the working-class, peasant, and 
artisanal populations are broadly discussed, as well as the massive 
emergence of a declassed, underpaid, and overexploited population: women 
and children. The book attempts to transcribe these working-class voices 
into simple terms, and very quickly addresses the crucial questions of 
the political capacity of the working class, mutualism, association, and 
revolution. If a historical connection were needed, it would be more 
reminiscent of the early days of the First International, before the 
break with Marx and the advocates of the primacy of partisan political 
action.

Pierre Ansart can hardly be accused of misunderstanding Marx or 
Proudhon, to whom he devoted several writings. The preface to the book 
is by Freddy Gomez, who reminds us that Pierre Ansart wanted to 
"confront the work of Marx with that of Proudhon 'outside of any 
partisan polemic and as honestly as possible.'" The introductory note on 
the back cover perfectly sums up the objective of this book: "slandered 
by Marx, misled by the far right, neglected by libertarians themselves, 
Pierre-Joseph Proudhon, the founder of anarchism, remains unloved, 
almost unknown today."

The grandiloquence of the note-"masterful essay," "quintessence of his 
social thought"-might put off the reader. It's better to stick to what 
follows: the rejection of capitalism, of all-out mechanization, of this 
system of exploitation. And this testimony to the worlds of the workshop 
and the small factory, of this worker-artisan who mastered a skill and a 
way of being. It is the world of the silk workers and not that of the 
petty bourgeoisie. This does not erase the errors of judgment, the snap 
judgments, that Proudhon could utter. His complex and tangled writings 
are not always easy to navigate, but they are the historical trace of a 
search for new social configurations capable of allowing the emergence 
of an authentic working-class voice, with all its complexity and all its 
wanderings.

Dominique Sureau (UCL Angers)

Pierre Ansart, Naissance de l'anarchisme, Esquisse d'une explication 
sociologique du proudhonisme, L'Échappée, 2025 (reissue of the work 
published by PUF in 1970), 384 pages, 22 euros.

https://www.unioncommunistelibertaire.org/?Lire-Pierre-Ansart-Naissance-de-l-anarchisme-Esquisse-d-une-explication
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