Empathy
- 4 May 2017
- 9781786892379
- £0.99
- 35 pp
In a few words
Power, control and the fight for our future: in this sample chapter from Creating Freedom, Martinez argues the case for compassion as a revolutionary act
Exceptional . . . This year's essential text for thinking radicals
If you believe you are free, think again. Strong arguments . . . epic in scope . . . [A] manifesto. . . . to enlighten citizens stuck in an illusion of democracy
More about
the book
Our society functions by separating us from each other: almost as soon as we’re born, we are taught to divide people into groups and see some as more deserving (and more human) than others. Everything from massive inequality to war depends on this process of categorisation and dehumanisation.
In this provocative, inspiring piece of writing, Raoul Martinez asks how and why our empathy is controlled, and argues for a very different world – one of deeper understanding and indiscriminate compassion.
Raoul Martinez is the author of Creating Freedom, from which Empathy is extracted.
Martinez speaks for a generation living through a profound mismatch between their aspirations for freedom and creativity and the thudding conformity a society, driven by the market, demands
Paul Mason
Comes the moment; comes the book. A 'manifesto for real and radical change'. This is a brilliant and timely analysis of our political landscape and the ideals which should inform how we reshape the world
Helena Kennedy Qc
Thought-provoking . . . sound and persuasive . . . Eminently readable with a an elegance of style not often found in theoretical works. It is no less than a rallying cry to take back the substance rather than the illusions of our freedoms
Provocative, powerful and important, Creating Freedom is a rigorous exploration of what's gone wrong with our society and how to make it right
Susan Sarandon
Raoul Martinez
View profileRaoul Martinez is a philosopher, artist, and award-winning filmmaker. Creating Freedom is his first book. It is informed by over a decade of research and is accompanied by a documentary series of the same name. Episode One, The Lottery of Birth – produced, written and co-directed by Raoul – premiered in 2012. It was nominated for Best Documentary at London’s Raindance Film Festival and went on to win the Artivist Spirit 2012 Award at Hollywood’s Artivist Festival. It has been translated into several languages and the second film is currently in production. Raoul lives and works in London, where his paintings have been selected for exhibition in the National Portrait Gallery. www.creatingfreedom.info
