French Literature Reviews - 2026

W. Gianinazzi, Georges Sorel: Philosopher of Autonomy
History, Politics and Society

Famous for writing Reflections on Violence, a work subject to diverse interpretations, Georges Sorel (1847–1922) nevertheless produced a body of work whose core principles are unambiguous. Viewing himself as a "disinterested servant of the proletariat," he never ceased to examine how organized working-class groups might forge a path toward a society liberated from the enslaving shackles of capitalism.

Following in the footsteps of Karl Marx—whom he helped introduce to France—Georges Sorel set out to dismantle the prestige of bourgeois culture and the seductive political strategies employed by the Republican state. The resistance he envisioned was equal to the stake: it demanded a total "cleavage" through direct action and the construction of proletarian autonomy, adhering to principles he shared with revolutionary syndicalists.

This book offers a fresh perspective on Sorel's political imagination. Alongside Willy Gianinazzi's studies on hitherto unsuspected facets of Sorel's thought, it includes committed writings by the philosopher—most of which were published in Italy, Sorel's second "homeland," and remained unknown in France.

Now more than ever, Sorel is worth rediscovering and reading: his infectious enthusiasm shines through as he identifies and elucidates the popular drives moving us toward freedom.

The Author

Willy Gianinazzi is a historian. For decades, he has been conducting research on the revolutionary syndicalist movement in France and Italy. His publications notably include Naissance du mythe moderne. Georges Sorel et la crise de la pensée savante (Maison des sciences de l’homme, 2006) as well as a biography of another thinker of autonomy, André Gorz. Une vie (La Découverte, 2016; paperback ed. 2019). He is a member of the editorial board of Mil neuf cent, revue d’histoire intellectuelle.

Table of Contents

Introduction: The Radicality of Autonomy

Chap. 1: Sorel's Marxism

Chap. 2: Rejection of Hierarchy and Working-Class Self-Emancipation

Chap. 3: Art Prefigures the Work of the Future

Chap. 4: Mental Images as Aids to Action

Chap. 5: Crowd Motives and Working-Class Consciousness

Chap. 6: Violence in the Service of Working-Class Autonomy

Part 2: Marxist and Syndicalist Writings of Georges Sorel

Text 1: The Socialist Future of Trade Unions (1898)

Text 2: General Strike, Social Peace, and Socialist Ministerialism (1900)

Text 3: The Trap of Arbitral Consultation of Workers (1901)

Text 4: The Poetics of Marxism (1903)

Text 5: Socialism as the Absolute Negation of the Existing Order (1901)

Text 6: Revolution and Socialism (1903–1905) - unpublished

Text 7: Return to Marx (1904) - unpublished

Text 8: Revolutionary Syndicalism (1905)

Text 9: Syndicalism and Democracy (1906) - unpublished

Text 10: The Drift of the CGT (1909) - unpublished

Text 11: Apology for Lenin (1919) - unpublished

Georges Sorel remains a singular figure in the history of European political thought, situated at the crossroads of Marxism, revolutionary syndicalism, and the intellectual debates of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. His critique of bourgeois culture and the Republican state developed within a broader European context of searching for alternatives to parliamentary politics and capitalist modernization. By emphasizing direct action and the creation of independent working-class institutions, Sorel contributed to a tradition of radical theory that sought to redefine the relationship between culture, philosophy, and social emancipation across France and Italy.

Willy Gianinazzi is a historian who has conducted research on the revolutionary syndicalist movement in France and Italy for decades. This publication examines Sorel's political imagination by bringing together studies alongside a selection of writings by the philosopher, most of which were published in Italy and remained unknown in France. Readers interested in the history of intellectual movements, syndicalism, and early twentieth-century political philosophy may find this volume relevant.