A Brief Global History of the Left

Shlomo Sand, Robin Mackay

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English

Polity Press
04 January 2024

Politics & government; Socialism & left-of-centre democratic ideologies

What is happening to the Left? It seems to be dying a slow death. While many commentators have predicted its demise, the Left has always defied these bleak prognoses and risen from the ashes in the most unexpected ways. Nevertheless, we are witnessing today a global decline in organized movements on the Left, and while social struggles continue to challenge dominant political regimes, these efforts do not translate into support for traditional left parties or into the creation of dynamic movements on the Left.

Bestselling historian Shlomo Sand argues that the global decline of the Left is linked to the waning of the idea of equality that has united citizens in the past and inspired them to engage in collective action. Sand retraces the evolution of this idea in a wide-ranging account that includes the Diggers and Levellers of seventeenth-century England; the French Revolution; the birth of anarchism and Marxism; the decolonial, feminist, and civil rights revolts; and the left-wing populism of our time. In piecing together the thinkers and movements that built the Left over centuries, Sand illuminates the global and transnational dynamics which pushed them forward. He outlines how they shaped the notion of equality, while also analysing how they were confronted by its material reality, and the lessons that they did – or did not – draw from this.

This concise and magisterial history of the Left will appeal to anyone interested in the idea of equality and the fate of one of the most important movements that has shaped the modern world.

By: Shlomo Sand
Translated by: Robin Mackay
Imprint: Polity Press
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 216mm, Width: 137mm, Spine: 25mm
Weight: 363g
ISBN: 9781509558254
ISBN 10: 150955825X
Pages: 271
Publication Date: 04 January 2024
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

Shlomo Sand is Emeritus Professor of History at the University of Tel Aviv.

Reviews for A Brief Global History of the Left

‘This absorbing and thought-provoking book is the richest and most varied account available of the fate of the idea of equality. It will be of great value to anyone interested in one of the core political ideas of the modern world and in the political movements – from the Levellers to the contemporary Left – that have championed it.’ Colin Crouch, University of Warwick ‘A fascinating and very thought-provoking book’ Nick Cohen