Reflections on James C. Scott’s Views of Resistance, Capital and the State

James C. Scott, a prominent American political scientist and anthropologist passed away at 87, on the 19th of July 2024. Scott was known for his work on how the working class and marginalized resist and evade domination by powerful groups, be it the ultra wealthy or the state. 

Scott is best known for his book 1985 ‘Weapons of the Weak: Everyday Forms of Peasant Resistance’ where he studied seventy families in a Malaysian village. Some of his other important books include ‘Seeing Like a State’ and ‘The Moral Economy of the Peasant.’

In this episode, we reflect on James C. Scott’s seminal works with Meredith Weiss, Professor of Political Science, University of Albany and Ooi Kok Hin, Political Sociologist. 

Photograph courtesy of James C. Scott via The Regents of the University of California, 2017