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Hope in the Dark

3.9 of 5 stars 3.90 · rating details · 154 ratings · 33 reviews

When the first edition of Hope in the Dark was published in mid-2004 it gained an instant cult audience. Many readers were so inspired by Solnit's book that they bought multiple copies to give to friends. This new, significantly expanded edition covers, among other things, the political territory of America and the world after George Bush's re-election. Acclaimed author Re...more

Published (first published May 10th 2004)

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Jan 18, 2013 David Sarkies rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: politics

There are a plethora of books out there about what is wrong with the world, and countless pages of research of the various countries, dictators, corporations, and Republicans (as well as Democrats) who are making this world a bad place to live, and the things that they are doing to make this world a bad place to live (as if the world has ever been a good place in which to live, but that is another story for another time), but there are very few books that talk about the victories and the people...more There are a plethora of books out there about what is wrong with the world, and countless pages of research of the various countries, dictators, corporations, and Republicans (as well as Democrats) who are making this world a bad place to live, and the things that they are doing to make this world a bad place to live (as if the world has ever been a good place in which to live, but that is another story for another time), but there are very few books that talk about the victories and the people who are winning against these powers and actually providing hope for a better, or even a not so darker, future. This book is one of those books.
I guess when I picked it up I grabbed it with a bulk of the other anti-bush, anti-republican party books that were filling up the bookshelves at the time to go onto the list of books to read to remind me of how bad Bush and his corporate cronies really were (as if I needed reminding, but I wanted it anyway). Actually, I guess it wasn't so much the reminding, but rather the research and the arguments (as well as indicators of the evidence to this wrongdoing) that I was interested in, but since this book fell amongst that lot, and since it looked interesting, I bought it and ended up reading it.
As the title says, this book is about hope, and is about those people that are winning victories against the corporate onslaught. Look, it is not impossible, difficult, but not impossible, to win against these powers. People believed that it would be impossible to defeat Hitler, but we did. We also thought it impossible to bring down the Soviet Union or to end aparteid in South Africa, but once again we did (though the brighter future for both places never eventuated). Once again, it never seemed possible to end slavery in the Southern States, or to break the power of the corporate monopolies of the early Twentieth century, but once again that was achieved. So, while things may seem difficult at this time, and the corporate bosses live in luxury while those of us down on the ground struggle to make ends meet (okay, I don't, but that is because I go without things like a car or a family), there is always that hope in the dark.(less)

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Apr 28, 2013 Vendela rated it 4 of 5 stars

This book. Its heart. I cried so many times while reading it, because Solnit doesn't shy away from the immensely painful even as she argues for the persistence and resistance inherent in hope. For victories that may not be everything you hope for but that are an incentive to keep walking. She's remarkably broad in her scope, which isn't always a good thing (she's the most convincing when she draws on her own experience or that of her brother, who is a global justice organizer), but it is refresh...more

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Apr 11, 2009 Adam rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: lefty, organizing-and-activism

Solnit strikes again! Right to my heart. I think she's committed to progressive movement building for the same reason as me: love. Not anger, but love, and really, hope, because we're in this not so that we have something to do, but because we think we're on to something; that there are some “wild possibilities.”

Solnit wrote this before the Obama campaign, before there was that added discursive element to the word “hope.” “Hope” is a departure point for her, a meaning for her to describe her per...more Solnit strikes again! Right to my heart. I think she's committed to progressive movement building for the same reason as me: love. Not anger, but love, and really, hope, because we're in this not so that we have something to do, but because we think we're on to something; that there are some “wild possibilities.”

Solnit wrote this before the Obama campaign, before there was that added discursive element to the word “hope.” “Hope” is a departure point for her, a meaning for her to describe her personal journey from art to activism, and a lens for which to see the history of progressive forces in American society. With an existentialist flair, she identifies that “hope just means another world might be possible, not promised, not guaranteed. Hope calls for action; action is impossible without hope” (5).

Solnit sets out to challenge the psyche of much of the Left, which is largely lack of hope. She describes a grim psychology that she attributes to the Left's historical position in adversarial opposition: a quickness to downplay victories, to deny successes, to show skepticism to stories of achievement. As she points out, the fact that the unprecedented number of protesters who marched worldwide (including Antartica!) against the invasion of Iraq did not fail because it did not bring the war to a halt. Rather, it succeeded in creating new networks, communities, communication, etc.

The other insight Solnit has into the American Left is the tendency for people to turn to activism only in times of crisis. She provocatively draws a line between the Judeo-Christian idea of fall from grace and perfection to the idea of activism as “saving” (as in “save _____.” Fill in the blank with “the whales,” “our school,” etc.), then going home at the end of the day, as opposed to creating activism in everyday practice. She argues that the acts of new yorkers on 9/11, which some call heroic, are really just good citizenship, and asks aloud why we don't always act like good citizens.

Solnit makes the case that there is much hope in the global justice movement for it's ability to unite pieces inherited from previous decades: the women's movements, labor movements, peace movements, have at times united under the umbrella of anti-corporate globalization. Global capitalism has begotten global resistance—it is gloablization from below. I've butchered her excellent writing to make it sound simplistic. I'm not a good writer...and I don't have time to re-type the entire book...but it's short, so you should just read it...

Anyway, I'll admit that it feels good to read from a committed radical who isn't grim, and if it makes me double my efforts, that's a good thing, right? Aside from feeling good, though, I think that Solnit articulates some developments that give us good cause for hope. She is describing what thinking and practice I see around me in my generation: a type of movement building that is critical of 60's macho-revolutionary violence, post-ideological, non-sectarian, action-focused, post-identity politics, transnational, and community-building.

Solnit manages to discuss a series of ideas that evoke theoretical fragments from some of my favorite thinkers, blowing my mind in the process: culture as a political source (Gramsci), revolutionary practice as creating alternative powers instead of seizing power (Graeber, Negri), and living life as a constant state of becoming (de Beauvoir).

Perhaps most excitingly, she manages to bring an outsider perspective to the relevance and legitimacy of anarchist elements. She speaks to the “politics of process,” which includes “non-hierarchical decision-making, decentralized organizing, and deep community democracy (105). Additionally, she describes it as a politics of prefiguration, by which we embody our political visions—we practice the politics we wish to achieve. When I studied with the Mujeres Creando, an anarchist women's group in Bolivia, they described this same idea as “practica politica,” or political practice. Examples Solnit points to are the Solidarity movement in Poland: “By acting as if they were free, the people of Eastern Europe became free” (31), and the Zapatista movement in Mexico, quoting their spokesperson: “'With our struggle, we are reading the future which has already been sown yesterday, which is being cultivated today, and which can only be reaped if one fights, if, that is, one dreams'” (37). In Solnit's words, the politics of prefiguration means that “if you embody what you aspire to, you have already succeeded” (86-87).

What this adds up to is a pithy stew of ideas. I'm sorry to quote her again, but she's just so damn quotable! So I leave you with this: “For a long time, I've thought that the purpose of activism and art, or at least of mine, is to make a world in which people are producers of meaning, not consumers” (115).(less)

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Aug 17, 2009 Beth Anne rated it 5 of 5 stars

This book is great for renewing your lost faith in radical politics, the ability of people to change the world, and any other sort of sad sack situation a person with a conscience and a tendency for blueness might find themselves in. I loved it. Thanks go to this book for making me want to read everything solnit has ever written. A reviewer called her a master of the imaginative leap, and I think indeed! I think yes, I think, thanks for being so awesome, rebecca solnit, I'm going to try to go se...more

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Sep 01, 2010 K rated it 4 of 5 stars

What I really enjoyed about this book was the use of modernism and applying it to politics, because I think it's important to not want all or nothing and to recognize the chaos, flux, and pain in this world. She also articulates thoughts about utopia really well & the importance of living in the present moment. There are moments where the writing I think could be better, but overall she's articulate and passionate. I recommend this for any and all radicals who need a little reminder about wh...more

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Oct 17, 2008 Shinynickel rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: anyone trying to make the world better

I really enjoyed Solnit's slim book on the power of activism and social action. She takes as her focus the burnout that so many activists experience, and connects it with the very thing that prevents so many people from taking action in the first place - the sense that what they do does not matter, that all their efforts and sacrifices are in vain, that they remove so little of the darkness in the world that all their hopes disintegrate.

She points out in many cases, successes are invisible (prev...more

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Mar 06, 2013 Tessa rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: non-fiction

In spite of Solnit's clear Left leanings, I did not come away from Hope in the Dark with the impression that she seeks to indoctrinate or convert, but rather to give credit to the anonymous people toiling away on the margins of the great sociopolitical drama that often seems so one-sided and hopeless. As long as you keep an open mind and do not expect to receive an untainted perspective, this book can be a refreshing and inspiring read. I gave it 3 stars instead of 4 mostly because the narrative...more

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Jan 04, 2009 Marjorie rated it 5 of 5 stars

I think that Rebecca Solnit is one of the voices of our times to be listened to. She has a poetic soul and a political brain. The combination exposed me to events and phenomena about which I was pitifully unaware - especially with regard to the World Trade Organization and nuclear testing in the Nevada desert...but unlike many writers of her generation, she continues to provide hope for a better world and seems not to despair.

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Apr 14, 2009 Rachel rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

It's always a joy to read the work of someone who eloquently articulates your own world view. That being said, I do wish that she would sometimes delve into the nittty-gritty of activism more than she does. In attempting to be optimistic and highlight where we've had success, she paints over the boring, tedious nature of much organizing. Still though, an inspiring read.

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Oct 09, 2009 Chris Brown marked it as to-read

huffingtonpost.com recommendation -

Reading Rebecca Solnit's Hope in the Dark renewed the sense that what we do makes a difference and how we think matters. To me, that's what makes it possible to get out of bed every day and work for a better future -- without falling into despair.

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Oct 01, 2012 Phillip Rhoades rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: non-fiction, philosophy, politics, history

Rebecca Solnit explores a narrative so rarely witnessed in radical and activist literature: hope and success. This is a must-read for anyone interested in social and environmental justice in the new millennia. I would write more but the book speaks for itself and I implore you to hear her words.

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Feb 15, 2010 M marked it as to-read

Touted as the new Didion, Solnit has a lot to live up to. I'm curious to see if her writing measures up. The man who decided to publish her essay claims she "writes like an angel" and asked her to please disregard his previous blow-off-young-author email. I'm definitely intrigued.

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Apr 20, 2013 Alex rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: history, movement, capitalism

a nice short book by Rebecca Solnit on reasons to remain hopeful despite the horrors of imperialism and capitalism. lots of inspiring tidbits and quotes from the Zapatistas and anti-globalization movement.

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Nov 04, 2009 Celia rated it 3 of 5 stars

I thought this book wasn't totally cohesive - seemed more like a collection of essays than a book - it was a quick, interesting read.

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Nov 14, 2011 christopher rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The best book written about the Occupy Movement years before it started!

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Mar 31, 2010 Jennifer rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

If you want to change the world, start by reading this book.

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Jul 06, 2011 jennifer added it

this was good. there are parts i want to pull out and rewrite repeatedly, meditatively. it perfectly fits my passive/active outlook: you can't ever know what you do matters but you have to act according to your best vision of how the world should be anyway. she adds the hope part - not inherent to my approach - and seeds you with stories of the unpredictable eddying and overflow of transformative change. you can't know what spark will catch, but some do, eventually, every so often.

ps i like a bo...more

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Mar 02, 2009 Jeff rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

A hopeful book for burned out activists.

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Nov 25, 2011 Rahulkrishna rated it 3 of 5 stars

I liked it...

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Mar 05, 2008 xVirgo rated it 2 of 5 stars

Hope in the Dark is a book written to remind activists to celebrate their small victories. The theory is that the revolution has already started and the only way to keep fighting in it is to not be boggled down by the fact that the world is not yet at peace but that your direct action got chevron to close a factory or you were a part of a community that rose above oppression and pushed successfully for legislative change. This is a book you can live without reading.

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Mar 06, 2009 AJ rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: nonfiction, 2009, do-not-own

This book is about social activism and the idea of staying active even if things seem hopeless. The book was overall good, but the flowery prose style felt somehow fake, and I found the book to be rather boring.

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Jun 22, 2007 Chuck rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: recentlyread

If the recent political climate in the United States has gotten you down as an activist, Rebecca Solnit's book Hope in the Dark should give you plenty of inspiration to get back into the thick of the struggle. Solnit is an accomplished writer and a long time activist who cut her teeth on struggles such as the peace movement protests against nuclear testing in Nevada in the 1980s.

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Jul 01, 2008 Pablo rated it 3 of 5 stars

this isn't the best writing rebecca solnit has churned out. it's good, and maybe better than i thought it would be after the first 30 pages. my best attempt to classify it would be as a self-help tract for activists. while the dieas and stories with the book are good, it lacks the beauty and simplicity of some of her other works.

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May 23, 2008 Elaine rated it 4 of 5 stars

A good little book for activists fighting the good fight, particularly when you are afraid your organizing isn't getting you as far as you would like or isn't making an impact on a wide level. It's a quick read with numerous examples of how our good efforts do make a difference, even when we don't realize it.

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Mar 26, 2009 Sasha rated it 4 of 5 stars

I borrowed this book from the library to read, but I've decided to buy it. Like most of Rebecca's other work, it contains so many nuggets of wisdom and useful knowledge that will again inspire me on a day probably not so far in the future when I'm feeling overwhelmed by the state of everything.

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Apr 09, 2009 Sarah rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2009

I read this book as release from school-thinkin' during my last week of classes. A fast read and excellent recap of the big moments in activism during the 1990s and early years of the new millenium. I especially love this: "Perfection is a stick with which to beat the possible." (page 81)

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Apr 02, 2008 Michael Martin rated it 5 of 5 stars

Rebecca Solnit's 'Hope in the Dark: Untold Histories, Wild Possibilities" is just what's needed to remind weary activists of the underreported triumphs of global resistance to hegemony, and the unfolding possibilities for tomorrow. Highly recommended.

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Jul 29, 2008 Hope rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: activists

Recommended to Hope by: Amy Wisehart

I highly recommend this book to those who are interested in making positive change in the world and especially those feeling burnt out by it all.

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Nov 30, 2008 Emily rated it 5 of 5 stars

Solnit is an inspiration to me, a current favorite

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Nov 19, 2008 Jose rated it 4 of 5 stars

Just when you think things are bad or getting worse, read this one!

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About Rebecca Solnit

Rebecca Solnit (b. 1961) is the author of numerous books, including Hope in the Dark, River of Shadows: Eadweard Muybridge and the Technological Wild West, Wanderlust: A History of Walking, and As Eve Said to the Serpent: On Landscape, Gender, and Art, which was nominated for the National Book Critics Circle Award in Criticism. In 2003, she received the prestigious Lannan Literary Award.

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River of Shadows: Eadweard Muybridge and the Technological Wild West

A Paradise Built in Hell: The Extraordinary Communities That Arise in Disaster

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“Perfection is a stick with which to beat the possible.” — 12 people liked it

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