Situationist International anthology - Ken Knabb

E-book of the most comprehensive collection of writings in book form of the Situationist International in English, translated and compiled by Ken Knabb.

Submitted by Tyrion on October 21, 2013

NB: Many of the texts below are also included as standalone articles in Libcom's archive of the International Situationniste journal.

In 1957 a few European avant-garde groups came together to form the Situationist International. Picking up where the dadaists and surrealists had left off, the situationists challenged people's passive conditioning with carefully calculated scandals and the playful tactic of detournement. Seeking a more extreme social revolution than was dreamed of by most leftists, they developed an incisive critique of the global spectacle-commodity system and of its "Communist" pseudo-opposition, and their new methods of agitation helped trigger the May 1968 revolt in France. Since then--although the SI itself was dissolved in 1972, situationist theories and tactics have continued to inspire radical currents all over the world. The Situationist International Anthology, generally recognized as the most comprehensive and accurately translated collection of situationist writings in English, presents a rich variety of articles, leaflets, graffiti and internal documents, ranging from early experiments in "psychogeography" to lucid analyses of the Watts riot, the Vietnam War, the Prague Spring, the Chinese Cultural Revolution and other crises and upheavals of the sixties.

Contents:
Preface by Ken Knabb

PRE-S.I. TEXTS

Formulary for a New Urbanism Ivan Chtcheglov (1953)
Introduction to a Critique of Urban Geography by Guy Debord (1955)
Proposals for Rationally Improving the City of Paris by Lettrist International (1955)
A User’s Guide to Détournement by Guy Debord and Gil J. Wolman (1956)
The Alba Platform by Lettrist International (1956)
Notes on the Formation of an Imaginist Bauhaus by Asger Jorn (1957)
Report on the Construction of Situations by Guy Debord (1957)

FRENCH JOURNALS

The Sound and the Fury
Preliminary Problems in Constructing a Situation
Definitions
Theses on Cultural Revolution by Guy Debord
The Situationists and Automation by Asger Jorn
No Useless Leniency by Michèle Bernstein
Action in Belgium Against the International Assembly of Art Critics #2 (1958)
Theory of the Dérive by Guy Debord #3 (1959)
Détournement as Negation and Prelude
Situationist Theses on Traffic by Guy Debord
Another City for Another Life by Constant/Constant Nieuwenhuys #4 (1960)
The Use of Free Time
Gangland and Philosophy by Attila Kotányi #5 (1960)
The Adventure
The Fourth SI Conference in London #6 (1961)
Instructions for an Insurrection
Basic Program of the Bureau of Unitary Urbanism by Attila Kotányi and Raoul Vaneigem
Perspectives for Conscious Changes in Everyday Life by Guy Debord #7 (1962)
Geopolitics of Hibernation
The Bad Days Will End
The Fifth SI Conference in Göteborg
Basic Banalities (Part 1) by Raoul Vaneigem #8 (1963)
Ideologies, Classes, and the Domination of Nature
The Avant-Garde of Presence
The Counter-Situationist Campaign in Various Countries
All the King’s Men
Basic Banalities (Part 2) by Raoul Vaneigem
Anti-Public Relations Notice #9 (1964)
Now, the SI
Questionnaire
Response to a Questionnaire from the Center for Socio-Experimental Art by J. V. Martin, Jan Strijbosch, Raoul Vaneigem and René Viénet #10 (1966)
Address to Revolutionaries of Algeria and of All Countries
The Decline and Fall of the Spectacle-Commodity Economy
The Class Struggles in Algeria
Contribution to a Councilist Program in Spain
Some Theoretical Topics That Need To Be Dealt With by Raoul Vaneigem
Captive Words: Preface to a Situationist Dictionary by Mustapha Khayati
The Role of Godard
The Ideology of Dialogue
Interview with an Imbecile
The Algeria of Daniel Guérin, Libertarian
Domenach versus Alienation #11 (1967)
The Explosion Point of Ideology in China
Two Local Wars
Our Goals and Methods in the Strasbourg Scandal
The Situationists and the New Forms of Action Against Politics and Art by René Viénet
Aiming for Practical Truth by Raoul Vaneigem
Setting Straight Some Popular Misconceptions About Revolutions in the Underdeveloped Countries by Mustapha Khayati
Minimum Definition of Revolutionary Organizations
Three Postscripts to the Previous Issue #12 (1969)
The Beginning of an Era
Reform and Counterreform in the Bureaucratic Bloc
How Not To Understand Situationist Books
Preliminaries on Councils and Councilist Organization by René Riesel
Notice to the Civilized Concerning Generalized Self-Management by Raoul Vaneigem
The Conquest of Space in the Time of Power by Eduardo Rothe
The Latest Exclusions
The Elite and the Backward
Cinema and Revolution
The Organization Question for the SI by Guy Debord

MISCELLANEOUS PUBLICATIONS

Preliminaries Toward Defining a Unitary Revolutionary Program by Pierre Canjuers and Guy Debord (1960)
For a Revolutionary Judgment of Art by Guy Debord (1961)
Theses on the Paris Commune by Guy Debord, Attila Kotányi, Raoul Vaneigem (1962)
The Situationists and the New Forms of Action in Politics and Art by Guy Debord (1963)
On the Poverty of Student Life (1966)
In Short (1965 & 1969)

MAY 1968 DOCUMENTS

Communiqué
Watch Out for Manipulators! Watch Out for Bureaucrats!
Slogans To Be Spread Now by Every Means
Telegrams
Report on the Occupation of the Sorbonne
For the Power of the Workers Councils
Address to All Workers
Graffiti

INTERNAL TEXTS

Provisional Statutes of the SI (1969)
Provisional Theses for the Discussion of New Theoretico-Practical Orientations in the SI by Paolo Salvadori (1970)
Remarks on the SI Today by Guy Debord (1970)
Declaration by Guy Debord, René Riesel and René Viénet (1970)
Untitled Text by Guy Debord (1971)

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Preface to the Situationist International Anthology

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Ken Knabb's introduction to the anthology of his translations of SI texts.

Submitted by libcom on July 30, 2005

Situationist International Anthology

Edited and translated from the French by Ken Knabb 1981 (2nd printing 1989; 3rd printing 1995) 406 pages

PREFACE (updated)

PRE-S.I. TEXTS

Formulary for a New Urbanism (Chtcheglov, 1953) Introduction to a Critique of Urban Geography (Debord, 1955) A User's Guide to Détournement (Debord & Wolman, 1956) The Alba Platform (Lettrist International, 1956) Notes on the Formation of an Imaginist Bauhaus (Jorn, 1957) Report on the Construction of Situations (Debord, 1957)**

FILM SOUNDTRACKS

On the Passage of a Few Persons Through a Rather Brief Period of Time (Debord, 1959) Critique of Separation (Debord, 1961)

FRENCH S.I. JOURNALS

#1 (1958) The Sound and the Fury Preliminary Problems in Constructing a Situation Definitions The Situationists and Automation (Jorn)* No Useless Leniency (Bernstein)* Action in Belgium Against the International Assembly of Art Critics

#2 (1958) Theory of the Dérive (Debord)

#3 (1959) Détournement as Negation and Prelude Situationist Theses on Traffic (Debord)

#4 (1960) Gangland and Philosophy (Kotányi)**

#5 (1960) The Adventure* The Fourth SI Conference in London*

#6 (1961) Instructions for an Insurrection Basic Program of the Bureau of Unitary Urbanism (Kotányi & Vaneigem) Perspectives for Conscious Changes in Everyday Life (Debord)

#7 (1962) Geopolitics of Hibernation The Bad Days Will End The Fifth SI Conference in Göteborg* Basic Banalities (part 1) (Vaneigem)

#8 (1963) Ideologies, Classes, and the Domination of Nature** The Avant-Garde of Presence* The Counter-Situationist Campaign in Various Countries* All the King's Men Basic Banalities (part 2) (Vaneigem) Situationist International Anti-Public Relations Notice

#9 (1964) Now, the SI Questionnaire Response to a Questionnaire from the Center for Socio-Experimental Art

#10 (1966) Address to Revolutionaries of Algeria and of All Countries The Decline and Fall of the Spectacle-Commodity Economy (Watts riot) The Class Struggles in Algeria Some Theoretical Topics That Need To Be Dealt With (Vaneigem) Captive Words: Preface to a Situationist Dictionary (Khayati) The Role of Godard The Ideology of Dialogue Interview with an Imbecile The Algeria of Daniel Guérin, Libertarian Domenach versus Alienation*

#11 (1967) The Explosion Point of Ideology in China Two Local Wars (Vietnam and Arab-Israel) Our Goads and Methods in the Strasbourg Scandal The Situationists and the New Forms of Action Against Politics and Art (Viénet) Aiming for Practical Truth (Vaneigem) Setting Straight Some Popular Misconceptions About Revolutions in the Underdeveloped Countries (Khayati) Minimum Definition of Revolutionary Organizations Six Postscripts to the Previous Issue*

#12 (1969) The Beginning of an Era (May 1968 revolt in France): part 1 part 2 Reform and Counterreform in the Bureaucratic Bloc (Prague Spring) How Not To Understand Situationist Books* Preliminaries on Councils and Councilist Organization (Riesel) Notice to the Civilized Concerning Generalized Self-Management (Vaneigem) The Conquest of Space in the Time of Power (Rothe) The Latest Exclusions** Maitron the Historian* The Elite and the Backward* Cinema and Revolution The Organization Question for the SI (Debord)

MISCELLANEOUS S.I. PUBLICATIONS

Preliminaries Toward Defining a Unitary Revolutionary Program (Canjuers & Debord, 1960) For a Revolutionary Judgment of Art (Debord, 1961) Theses on the Paris Commune (Debord, Kotányi, Vaneigem, 1962) The Situationists and the New Forms of Action in Politics and Art (Debord, 1963)** On the Poverty of Student Life (1966) In Short (1965 & 1969)

MAY 1968 DOCUMENTS

Communiqué (Sorbonne Occupation Committee) Watch Out for Manipulators! Watch Out for Bureaucrats! (SOC) Slogans To Be Spread Now by Every Means (SOC) Telegrams (SOC) Report on the Occupation of the Sorbonne (CMDO) For the Power of the Workers Councils (CMDO) Address to All Workers (CMDO)

INTERNAL S.I. TEXTS

Provisional Statutes of the SI (1969) Provisional Theses for the Discussion of New Theoretico-Practical Orientations in the SI (Salvadori, 1970)* Remarks on the SI Today (Debord, 1970)* Declaration (Debord, Riesel, Viénet, 1970) Untitled Text (Debord, 1971)*

BIBLIOGRAPHY (continually updated) THE BLIND MEN AND THE ELEPHANT (Selected Opinions on the Situationists) INDEX TO "SI ANTHOLOGY" (and to entire BPS website)

INDEX TO DEBORD'S "SOCIETY OF THE SPECTACLE" INDEX TO VANEIGEM'S "REVOLUTION OF EVERYDAY LIFE"

* Excerpts. ** Excerpted in the book, but now complete in the online version.

BUREAU OF PUBLIC SECRETS, PO BOX 1044, BERKELEY CA 94701, USA [email protected] http://www.slip.net/~knabb

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