A Comparison of Practical and Principled Nonviolent Action Theories Ess

A Comparison of Practical and Principled Nonviolent Action Theories Introduction The phrase "nonviolent action" brings to mind a wide variety of sometimes conflicting images. The image of a Chinese student at Tiananmen Square standing in the way of a tank was portrayed around the world, along with the stories of those who were shot and run over by those tanks. Indian participants pressed forward undauntedly in columns and then in groups to the salt depot at Dharasana while being beaten back with clubs by police forces who were infuriated by the nonresistance of the people. Individual Danes sneaked onto the Nazi occupied airfields at night to sabotage their own planes to prevent them from being used against the Allies and the Danish people. Polish workers during the Solidarity movement refused to vote even though it was illegal and succeeded in preventing the election of unwanted single ticket politicians. Though widely varied, these images all accurately represent nonviolent social change movements of the last century. Two theories have dominated the recorded history of the nonviolent social change movement as motivation for keeping the movements nonviolent: pragmatism and principle. A pragmatic approach has led to what is called practical nonviolent action--action based either on the lack of violent options or on the direct efficiency of nonviolence. Action based on a theory of moral, ethical, or religious principles is known as principled nonviolent action. Both theories have motivated successful campaigns and both have spawned actions in which the goals of the movement were not accomplished. A number of authors in recent years have carefully examined and articulated both theories along with the case studies of moveme... ... 1989. Douglas, James. Lightning East to West: Jesus, Gandhi, and the nuclear age. New York: Crossroad, 1983. Gandhi, Mahatma K. Satyagraha. Ahmedabad: Navajivan Publishing House 1958. King, Mary. Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr: The Power of Nonviolent Action. Paris: UNESCO Publishing, 1999. Powers, . Protest, Power and Change. Roberts, Adam. Civilian Resistance as National Defense. Schell, Orville. "Children of Tiananmen." Rolling Stone. December 14-28, 1989: 185-8+. Sharp, Gene. The Politics of Nonviolent Action volume 1. Boston: P. Sargen, 1973. Touraine, Alain. Solidarity: The Analysis of a Social Movement. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1983. Walesa, Lech. A Way of Hope. New York: H. Holt, 1987. Yi, Mu. Crisis at Tiananmen: Reform and Reality in Modern China. San Francisco, CA: China Books & Periodicals, c1989