Much of the material broadcast or written to mark the 20th anniversary of the miners’ strike has portrayed their struggle as a brave but tragic attempt to save a dying industry.
No matter how sympathetically the miners, their families and their supporters are portrayed, that view of their battle against Thatcher’s government onslaught does a massive disservice to the momentous struggle they conducted.
It is absolutely vital for the struggles of future generations of trade unionists and socialist militants that a balance sheet of the strike is drawn. Millions of ordinary working-class people, the miners and their families carried out heroic endeavors during the strike. This book shows the miners were right to take the action they did. They could have won a victory which would have raised the sights and confidence of the whole working-class movement.
About the author
Ken Smith is a member of the Socialist Party executive committee. He has been involved in socialist politics since the mid-1970s in South Wales and London.
During the 1984-85 miners’ strike he was an organiser for Militant (forerunner of the Socialist Party) in South Wales.
Early on in the strike he was elected the chair of the Llynfi and Afan Valley Miners’ Support Group. The group worked closely alongside St John’s NUM Lodge and other lodges in the two valleys to organise the political and financial support for nearly a thousand miners and their families during the strike.
About the cartoonist
Alan Hardman has been drawing excellent cartoons and illustrations for the Militant, Militant International Review, the Socialist and Socialism Today since the early 1970s. His work has also been used in many labour movement publications internationally.
During the miners’ strike Alan’s work gave tremendous inspiration to all those involved in the struggle. Many of his cartoons were also used by NUM branches and miners’ support group on their leaflets, posters and publications.
To this day the cartoons retain a sharpness in conveying the issues surrounding the strike, bringing it once more to life for those who lived through it and for those discovering it for the first time.
“A Civil War without Guns”这本书,它首先给我的感觉是一种颠覆。我们通常想到内战,脑海里便会浮现出战火纷飞、血流成河的景象,但这本书的标题却直接打破了这种固有印象。我迫不及待地想知道,作者将如何描绘一场没有实体武器的冲突,而这场冲突的“战场”又在哪里。阅读的初期,我就被作者那充满诗意的语言风格深深吸引。他似乎并不急于抛出惊世骇俗的论断,而是用一种舒缓而有力的笔触,慢慢地构建出整个故事的骨架。他善于从平凡的日常细节中挖掘出不平凡的意义,通过对人物细微表情、肢体语言以及对话的描写,将那个时代的社会氛围、人物关系以及潜在的矛盾展现得淋漓尽致。我感觉自己像一个侦探,在作者的引导下,仔细地搜寻着每一个蛛丝马迹,试图拼凑出隐藏在平静表象之下的真相。这种叙事方式让我倍感投入,仿佛自己也成为了故事中的一员,与书中人物一同经历着内心的挣扎与抉择。我期待着这场“无声的战争”能够逐渐升级,让我看到那些隐藏的冲突如何爆发,又将如何解决。
评分“A Civil War without Guns”——这个书名本身就给我带来了极大的好奇和想象空间。我一直对历史上的冲突和变革很感兴趣,而这本书所提出的“没有枪炮的内战”这一概念,无疑是一种全新的视角。翻开书的第一页,我就被作者所描绘的那个时代图景所吸引。他的笔触细腻而生动,仿佛能够将我带回到那个遥远的过去,让我亲身感受那个时代的氛围。作者并没有急于描述激烈的冲突,而是用一种温和而富有条理的方式,为我铺垫了故事发生的背景。他对于人物心理的刻画尤为出彩,那些人物的内心挣扎、情感波动,以及他们之间的微妙互动,都被作者描绘得栩栩如生。我仿佛能听到他们内心的低语,感受到他们之间无声的较量。这种叙事方式让我沉浸其中,让我开始思考,真正的冲突,是否真的需要依赖于武力才能产生?我期待着作者能够进一步揭示这场“无声的战争”是如何演变的,以及那些无形的武器,是如何在这场战斗中发挥作用的。
评分这本书的封面上,那个带着些许褪色痕迹的标题——“A Civil War without Guns”,瞬间就抓住了我的眼球。我一直对历史,尤其是那些充满转折与冲突的时代情有独钟,而这个标题本身就充满了一种悖论式的吸引力,仿佛预示着一场不同寻常的战争。我迫不及待地翻开书页,想知道作者是如何构建这样一个没有硝烟的战场,以及在这场“战争”中,那些无形的武器——思想、言论、策略——如何交锋。作者的开篇就如同为我展开了一幅宏大的历史画卷,语言在沉静中蕴含着力量,字里行间流淌着对那个时代的深刻洞察。我尤其被作者对人物心理的细腻描摹所打动,那些在历史洪流中挣扎、抉择的个体,他们的内心世界被剖析得淋漓尽致,让人不禁为之动容。叙述的节奏张弛有度,既有波澜壮阔的宏大叙事,也有温婉细腻的个人情感描写,使得整个阅读过程如同品味一壶陈年的老酒,越品越有味道。我仿佛置身于那个遥远的年代,感受着空气中弥漫的紧张与期待,那些历史事件不再是冰冷的文字,而是鲜活的人物和真实的情感。我期待着作者能够带领我深入探索这场“无声的战争”的核心,揭示那些决定历史走向的关键节点,以及那些不为人知的幕后故事。这不仅仅是一本书,更像是一扇窗,让我得以窥探一个复杂而迷人的历史世界。
评分当我初次接触到“A Civil War without Guns”这本书时,我被它那极富想象力的书名所吸引。它不同于我以往读过的任何关于战争的叙事,没有刀光剑影,没有尸横遍野,却能挑起我内心深处对冲突与对抗的强烈好奇。作者在开篇就展现了其非凡的叙事功力,将一个看似静谧的时代背景渲染得暗流涌动。文字带着一种独特的节奏感,仿佛是精心编织的丝线,将一个个看似独立的事件巧妙地串联起来,勾勒出一幅幅充满张力的画面。我尤其欣赏作者对于细节的捕捉,那些不经意间流露出的生活片段,那些人物在不经意间流露出的情感,都仿佛是我亲身经历一般。我能感受到一种无形的压迫感,一种在平静表面下涌动的暗流。这种叙事方式让我思考,真正的冲突,究竟是体现在表面的厮杀,还是存在于更深层次的思想碰撞与权力博弈之中?这本书仿佛让我经历了一场智力与耐力的较量,每一个字句都可能隐藏着关键的线索,每一个段落都可能是我理解整个故事走向的基石。我沉浸在这种抽丝剥茧的阅读体验中,享受着每一次新发现带来的惊喜。
评分拿到“A Civil War without Guns”这本书,我首先被它所传达出的那种矛盾的张力所吸引。一个没有枪炮的内战,这本身就极具吸引力。我非常好奇作者将如何构思和展开这样的故事。书的开篇并没有直接切入所谓的“战争”情节,而是以一种非常沉稳的姿态,将我引入了故事所处的时代背景。作者的叙事风格非常独特,他仿佛是用一种冷静而客观的视角,在描绘一幅幅历史画卷。他对于社会背景、人物关系以及当时思潮的梳理,都显得极其严谨和深入。我尤其喜欢他对于群体心理的刻画,那些微妙的群体情绪变化,那些不易察觉的社会裂痕,都通过作者的笔触被放大和呈现。我感觉自己仿佛置身于一个观察者,看着各种力量在暗中角力,看着那些看不见的战线是如何形成的。这种叙事方式,让我更加专注于事件的本质,而非表面的形式。我期待着这场“无声的战争”能够在我眼前逐渐清晰起来,让我理解究竟是什么样的力量,能够引发一场如此大规模的内部冲突。
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