The Paradox of Freedom: A Biographical Dialogue

— —

David Scott (Columbia University, USA) Orlando Patterson (Harvard University, USA; London School of Economics, UK; University of the West Indies)

The Paradox of Freedom

A Biographical Dialogue

David Scott (Columbia University, USA), Orlando Patterson (Harvard University, USA; London School of Economics, UK; University of the West Indies)

$39.95

Paperback

Not in-store but you can order this
How long will it take?

Availability Information

We source books from suppliers in Australia and overseas. For books we don't currently have in stock, the time it takes to get them from our suppliers can vary widely - from a few days to a few months - so we check each book with each supplier to determine the expected time it will take to be supplied to us.

We then advise you accordingly. If the time taken to get any book is too long for you, you can let us know and we will cancel or adjust your order, and refund as required.

To find out the anticipated arrival time for specific items prior to ordering, please contact us by phone or email:

Phone +61 2 9264 3111, or 1800 4 BOOKS (1800 4 26657) if outside Sydney:
option 1 Abbey's Bookshop (Crime, History, Science, Kids & more) • info@abbeys.com.au
option 2 Language Book Centre (ESL & Foreign Languages) • language@abbeys.com.au
option 3 Galaxy Bookshop (Sci-fi, Fantasy, Romance, Graphic Novels) • sf@galaxybooks.com.au

QTY:

English

Polity Press
02 August 2023

Sociology & anthropology

The Paradox of Freedom is an exploration of the life and work of Orlando Patterson, probing the relationship between the circumstances of his life from their beginnings in rural Jamaica to the present and the complex development of his intellectual work. A novelist and historical sociologist with an orientation toward public engagement, Patterson exemplifies one way of being a Jamaican and Black Atlantic intellectual.

At the generative center of Patterson’s work has been a fundamental inquiry into the internal dynamics of slavery as a mode of social and existential domination. What is most provocatively significant in his work on slavery is the way it yields a paradoxical insight into the problem of freedom – namely, that freedom was born existentially and historically from the degradation and parasitic inhumanity of slavery and was as much the creation of the enslaved as of their enslavers.

The Paradox of Freedom elucidates the pathways by which Patterson has both uncovered the relationship between domination and freedom and engaged intellectually and publicly with the struggles for equality and decolonization among descendants of the enslaved. It will be of great interest to students and scholars throughout the humanities and social sciences and to anyone interested in the work of one of the most important public intellectuals of our time.

By: David Scott (Columbia University USA), Orlando Patterson (Harvard University, USA; London School of Economics, UK; University of the West Indies)
Imprint: Polity Press
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 226mm, Width: 152mm, Spine: 23mm
Weight: 454g
ISBN: 9781509551170
ISBN 10: 1509551174
Pages: 296
Publication Date: 02 August 2023
Audience: Professional and scholarly , Undergraduate
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

David Scott is Ruth and William Lubic Professor of Anthropology at Columbia University. Orlando Patterson is John Cowles Professor of Sociology at Harvard University.

Reviews for The Paradox of Freedom: A Biographical Dialogue

The Paradox of Freedom retraces the unique odyssey of the world's most eminent scholar of slavery and race in history, at the unlikely crossroads of Jamaica, literature, New Left politics, and sociology at Harvard. Read it: you will be swept along, thrilled, and educated all at once. --Loic Wacquant, University of California, Berkeley Forged in a crucible of life experience as a Jamaican, Orlando Patterson's lifelong exploration of the dialectical tension between freedom and slavery is brilliantly elucidated through dialogic conversation with David Scott, who traces the trajectory of a remarkable and still unfolding intellectual and artistic journey. --John Bodel, Brown University