The Anatomy of Revolution

There are several books on revolution since Marx till Ana Arendt, including Trotsky and Jacques Ellul. But I never read a so clear essay in revolution as this book of Professor Crane Brinton. It is a modern classic, impossible to set apart, it resists against time,and criticism. Brinton uses good models of revolution for a sound comparative theory, he discloses a pattern in all revolutions studied, though the american revolution can be seen as a long process of reformulation of a distant identity, clearly demarked from Great Britain. For students of Social and Political Sciences, for Teachers, the little book is a pearl. A M. Bessa, Portugal, Lisbon

While it is true that comparisons of the American and English, especially the American, with the Russian and French Revolutions are very imperfect, theories proposed by Britton in examining these revolutions are interesting. One of the most valuable ideas of his is that revolutions tend not to occur when things are really horrid, but when they are getting better. This concept proposes a tool for examining socities and predicting the future. This is consistent with the urban riots of the late 1960s with the rights gained by Blacks as opposed to the absence of such riots under Jim Crow. This could be expected using Britton's analytical tool. Another valuable concept is the return of the old order, perhaps in a different form, following the revolution, therefore Stalin follows the Czars and the First Empire after the killing of the king. Britton offers King George and the re-establishment of central authority by the Constitution, court rulings and such as an American comparison. This is really stretching a valuable idea. The British king before the revolution was certainly not a tyrant in North America. In fact the Royal Governor in Virginia was so popular that his statue still stands in front of the Wren building at William and Mary, as it did before the revolution. To compare the power of the Georges in America to that of the Czars is stretching a point. But to compare George Washington, John Adams and John Marshal to Stalin is absurd. Britton's real point is that centralization followed centralization. As Patrick Henry said of the Constittution "I smell a rat." Of course the centralization of power in Washington today is vastly greater than it ever was before 1776. The analytical tools Britton proposes are useful in predicting what will happen in particular situations , but they cannot be applied in the manner of mathamatical formulars predicting physical, chemical or even biologic events.

A former teacher, who had used this book in the mid-sixties in her social studies class, introduced me to Crane Brinton's work. The Anatomy of Revolution provides the perfect companion for high school educators who want to step away from the stodgy lecture method of teaching the English, French, American, and Russian revolutions. The book is invaluable for assisting in creating lesson plans that discuss the characteristics and commonalities of revolutions. Once learned, a model can be created that students can use to analyze and evaluate any of the world's major and minor revolutions. Crane Brinton's book is a "must have" for any high school social studies teacher interested in creating similar lessons on the topic of revolution that foster higher levels of learning.

To those who argue that this book is confusing, I have to disagree. This is one of the true classic texts in the study of revolution and the ideas here have been spun out for 3 decades or more by 'revolution theorists.' As someone who has completed a degree in revolution, I have to say that this is one of the best books out there for someone interested in the anatomy of the great revolutions. A real winner and a highly recommended book.

Those who are used to having their ideas served in a premasticated form (pre-chewed!) will certainly find Crane Brinton's "The Anatomy of Revolution" a difficult book. The vocabulary is expansive, and sequences of thought are frequently carried on to extraordinary lengths. Pages, paragraphs, and even sentences will need to be read several times, but the reward is worth the effort. Rather than simply putting a vast array of facts at the disposal of the reader, Brinton will successfully open the reader's mind to a new way of thinking.