James C. Scott
Also known as James Campbell Scott
American political scientist and anthropologist (1936 to 2024); wrote Seeing Like a State.
At a glance
Main ideas
The moral economy, Weapons of the weak, Hidden transcripts …
See all 4Books to start with
The Moral Economy of the Peasant, Weapons of the Weak, Domination and the Arts of Resistance …
See all 5Connections
Also on this page: Key facts · Links · Sources · Related pages
- Scott was a Yale political scientist who studied peasants, state power and resistance, starting with agrarian politics in Malaysia.
- His books described everyday peasant resistance, the hidden transcripts of the powerless and the failures of state-led schemes.
- Seeing Like a State (1998) explained why grand plans to improve society so often fail.
- At his death The New York Times called him among the most widely read social scientists.
Why it matters
- His ideas of legibility, high modernism and local knowledge are now common currency across the social sciences and policy.
Key facts
- Born
- 2 Dec 1936, Mount Holly, New Jersey1
- Died
- 19 Jul 2024, at his home in Durham, Connecticut, aged 871
- Education
- BA, Williams College (1958); PhD in political science, Yale (1967)1
- Career
- University of Wisconsin–Madison from 1967 to 1976; Yale from 1976 until he retired in 20221
- Position
- Sterling Professor of Political Science, Yale; director of the Program in Agrarian Studies from 19911
Main ideas
-
The moral economy1
Peasants put a secure subsistence first, and expect elites to respect it.
-
Weapons of the weak1
Everyday resistance shows the dominated have not consented to domination.
-
Hidden transcripts1
The critique of power the powerless voice offstage.
-
Legibility1
States simplify society to see and control it, and miss local knowledge.
Books to start with
The line under a date fills as it gets older: empty when new, full at 2 years.
-
The Moral Economy of the Peasant1
Rebellion and subsistence in Southeast Asia.
-
Weapons of the Weak1
Everyday forms of peasant resistance.
-
Domination and the Arts of Resistance1
Public and hidden transcripts.
-
Why schemes to improve the human condition fail.
-
The Art of Not Being Governed1
Societies that avoided the state.
Connections
Writes
Links
Sources
Last checked against its sources today
Is something on this page wrong or out of date? Tell us
The line under a date fills as time passes: empty when new, then one equal share each for a day, a week, a month and a year. For episodes and other items it is full at 2 years; for "last checked", at a year. A striped line means the date is known only to the month or year.