The Utopia of Rules

On Technology, Stupidity and the Secret Joys of Bureaucracy

by

Hardcover, 272 pages

Published Feb. 24, 2015 by Melville House, Melville House Publishing.

ISBN:
978-1-61219-374-8
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(2 reviews)

The Utopia of Rules: On Technology, Stupidity, and the Secret Joys of Bureaucracy is a 2015 book by anthropologist David Graeber about how people "relate to" and are influenced by bureaucracies. Graeber previously wrote Debt: The First 5000 Years and The Democracy Project, and was an organizer behind Occupy Wall Street. Graeber signed a book deal with Melville House toward the end of 2014, and The Utopia of Rules was released on February 24, 2015.

8 editions

reviewed Bureaucratie by David Graeber

Bureaucratie au service de la violence étatique

Graeber rend passionnant un sujet chiant : la bureaucratie. A travers l'analyse de cette dernière, il nous livre des réflexions sur le fait que la violence et le contrôle sont à l'origine même de l'Etat, que le capitalisme freine volontairement la créativité et les inventions, que la politique consiste à théâtraliser des duels entre héros...

reviewed The Utopia of Rules by David Graeber

Solid Analysis of the Rise of Bureaucracy in Pricate and Public Spheres

Graeber is always a delight to read, even when he's just rambling on about some anthropological anecdote.

This is probably one of Graeber's more accessible books, in so far as it's not a massive tome to read through and sticks relatively closely to the thesis.

Particularly enjoyed the penultimate essay, relating play, games and bureaucracy in an attempt to clarify why anyone would even desire bureaucracy in the first place.