''Bandits'' is a book by

Eric Hobsbawm Eric John Ernest Hobsbawm (; 9 June 1917 – 1 October 2012) was a British historian of the rise of industrial capitalism, socialism and nationalism. A life-long Marxist, his socio-political convictions influenced the character of his work. H ...

, first published in 1969. It focuses on the concept of bandits within the

mythology Myth is a folklore genre consisting of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society, such as foundational tales or origin myths. Since "myth" is widely used to imply that a story is not objectively true, the identification of a narrat ...

folklore Folklore is shared by a particular group of people; it encompasses the traditions common to that culture, subculture or group. This includes oral traditions such as tales, legends, proverbs and jokes. They include material culture, ranging ...

, and literature of Europe, specifically its relation to classical Marxist concepts of

class struggle Class conflict, also referred to as class struggle and class warfare, is the political tension and economic antagonism that exists in society because of socio-economic competition among the social classes or between rich and poor. The forms ...

Summary

Eric Hobsbawm sets out to explore and analyze the history of

banditry Banditry is a type of organized crime committed by outlaws typically involving the threat or use of violence. A person who engages in banditry is known as a bandit and primarily commits crimes such as extortion, robbery, and murder, either as an ...

and

organized crime Organized crime (or organised crime) is a category of transnational, national, or local groupings of highly centralized enterprises run by criminals to engage in illegal activity, most commonly for profit. While organized crime is generally th ...

and its relationship to class structures of agrarian societies. Hobsbawm specifies a specific form of crime that fit into the category of

social bandit Social banditry or social crime is a form of lower class social resistance involving behavior that by law is illegal but is supported by wider "oppressed" society as being moral and acceptable. The term ''social bandit'' was invented by the Marx ...

, which represented groups of young men, landless peasants, free-men, and military

deserters Desertion is the abandonment of a military duty or post without permission (a pass, liberty or leave) and is done with the intention of not returning. This contrasts with unauthorized absence (UA) or absence without leave (AWOL ), which ar ...

. Social bandits are distinguished from other forms of organized crime in how the majority peasantry perceived the bandits as rebels who opposed the unjust system of

feudalism Feudalism, also known as the feudal system, was the combination of the legal, economic, military, cultural and political customs that flourished in medieval Europe between the 9th and 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a way of structur ...

. Among social bandits there are three main historical categories: that of "The Noble Robbers", "The Avengers", and the "''haiduks''". The Noble Robbers are the romanticized concept of noble criminals who fight injustice and have a large popularity with the lower classes; key figures include

Robin Hood Robin Hood is a legendary heroic outlaw originally depicted in English folklore and subsequently featured in literature and film. According to legend, he was a highly skilled archer and swordsman. In some versions of the legend, he is depic ...

, Diego Corrientes Mateos and

Juro Janosik Juro may refer to: * Juro Novelty Company, American toy manufacturer People with the name * Juro Adlešič (1884–1968), Slovenian lawyer and politician * Jūrō Gotō (1887–1984), Japanese military officer * Juro Janosik (1688–1713), Slova ...

. The Avengers are bandits whose acts of cruelty and violence distinguish them as people both feared and respected by common people. Often they had very few redeeming qualities yet commanded respect because of their brutality.

References

External links

* https://thenewpress.com/books/bandits 1969 non-fiction books History books about Europe History books about the United Kingdom Books by Eric Hobsbawm Outlaws Non-fiction crime books Academic works about criminology {{Europe-hist-book-stub