Reflections on the Causes of Freedom and Social Oppression

What freedom remains for us when the conditions of our lives and work drag us into slavery?

“The history of mankind is nothing but the history of slavery, which transforms men, oppressors and oppressed alike, into mere instruments in the hands of the instruments of domination they themselves have created, and thus reduces living humanity to mere inanimate matter.” – Simone Weil

Simone Weil argues that political action, indeed revolutionary action, must be viewed as a systematic and rational endeavor—a form of work in itself—in which every effort must be made to prevent irrational impulses and violence from taking hold. A true revolution is a hymn to life, a way of honoring humanity by addressing exploitation, oppression, and injustice wherever they exist. If the goal of revolution becomes self-contained, if revolution becomes an end in itself and ceases to be a means of improving human life, then it loses its meaning. (From the introduction by Cristina Basili) Translated by Iñigo Sánchez Baños and Elena M. Cano