Prison Writings

Preface Translator's introduction SECTION 1: SLAVE-OWNING SOCIETY AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF CIVILISATION Introduction 1 The birth of civilisation on the banks of Tigris and Euphrates 2 The historical role of Sumerian civilisation 3 Permanent effects of Sumerian civilisation 4 Some methodological problems concerning historical development and expansion 5 The expansion and maturity of slavery 6 Tribal confederations, local and territorial states 7 Resistance to slaveholder civilisation and its reform 9 Medes, Persians and the making of the East SECTION 2: THE AGE OF FEUDAL CIVILISATION 1 The ideological identity of the feudal age 2 Islam as a revolutionary force of the feudal age 3 Institutionalisation and expansion of feudal civilisation 4 Climax and decay of feudal civilisation 5 Some conclusive remarks on Sections 1 and 2 SECTION 3: THE CIVILISATION OF THE AGE OF CAPITALISM 1 The birth of capitalism and its new ideological identity 2 The development and institutionalisation of capitalist civilisation 3 Capitalist expansion and the climax of capitalist civilisation 4 The overall crisis of civilisation and the age of democratic civilisation SECTION 4: IDEOLOGICAL IDENTITY AND TIMESPACE CONDITIONS OF THE NEW DEVELOPMENT IN CIVILISATION 1: Ideological identity in the third millennium 2: A new programme for the Kurdish movement 3: Reflections on strategic and tactical approaches 4: Time as a creative element 5: Global aspects and perspectives SECTION 5: CAN A NEW SYNTHESIS OF CIVILISATIONS ARISE FROM THE CULTURAL TRADITIONS OF THE MIDDLE EAST? 1 The renewal of ideological identity is a task of historic priority 2 The preconditions of a new synthesis 3 Theory and practice of Middle Eastern civil society Notes Index

Abdullah Ocalan actively led the Kurdish liberation struggle as the head of the PKK from its foundation in 1978 until his abduction on 15th February 1999. He is a leading strategist and the most important political representative of the Kurdish freedom movement. Under isolation conditions at Imrali Island Prison, Ocalan authored more than 10 books which revolutionised Kurdish politics, including The Political Thought of Abdullah Ocalan (Pluto, 2017), and Prison Writings, Volumes I and II (Pluto, 2007; 2011).

His method is that of a Marxist anthropologist. But he is also distinguished by his erudition and familiarity with ancient texts and history, as well as with etymological and linguistic anthropology. Once I began reading, I was unable to put the text down. It is very informative and perceptive. -- Ghada Talhami, D.K. Pearsons Professor of Politics, Lake Forest College, Illinois We would expect Abdullah Ocalan to write a political treatise. Instead, he has penned a monumental history of the ancient Near East that offers a grand vision. His well informed and highly original synthesis has the additional advantage of transcending academic fields. This is the first truly postcolonial history of Mesopotamia. ... This [is a] controversial, intellectually stimulating work. -- Randall H. McGuire, Professor of Anthropology, Binghamton University, Binghamton NY, and author of A Marxist Archaeology