Why Dissent Matters

Because Some People See Things the Rest of Us Miss

By (author) William Kaplan
Categories: Political Science
Publisher: McGill-Queen's University Press
Hardcover : 9780773550704, 376 pages, June 2017

An inquiry into dissent and how it might save the world.

Description

Kaplan’s book is an inquiry into dissent and how it might save the world. A wide-ranging and provocative work, Why Dissent Matters tells a story of dissent and dissenters—people who have been attacked, bullied, jailed, and, sometimes later, celebrated. Drawing attention to the voices behind international protests such as Occupy Wall Street and Boycott, Divest, and Sanction, he contends that we don’t have to do what dissenters want, but we should listen to what they say. To learn more about this publisher, click here: http://bit. ly/18XiH0w

Reviews

"Kaplan's simple, single idea is that voices that speak out against the consensus are valuable, desirable, the sine qua non of good decision-making. His book is well written, with plenty of interesting asides and intelligent observations. " Times Literary

“Applying a historical analysis to various kinds of dissent through the past century, and focusing on figures as diverse as Rachel Carson (Silent Spring) and Occupy Wall Street's Micah White, Kaplan illustrates the validity of protest as a means of social change. ” The Quill & Quire

“Passionate and forceful. ” Margaret MacMillan, University of Oxford

“Kaplan’s latest and most powerful book, Why Dissent Matters, is especially timely. ” ipoiltics

"A brave and powerful book. " Constance Backhouse, University of Ottawa

“Kaplan has it exactly right: the reason to listen to dissenters is that humans are fallible. ” Andrew Potter, The Literary Review of Canada