From the events of May 1968 to the Arab Spring and Occupy, we have seen social movements develop spontaneously around the globe propelling thousands and, at times, millions of people into the streets to demand an end to oppression."In order to make sense of such events, the authors draw on George Katsiaficas's conception of the 'eros effect,' which picks up and takes off from concepts developed by Herbert Marcuse. This effect describes moments in which the instinctual human need for justice and freedom undergoes a massive spontaneous awakening. Drawing on Marcuse, the concept foregrounds the instinctual foundation of the desire for freedom, in which a biologically-based pleasure drive-eros-is given free play." - from the Foreword by Peter MarcuseHowever, even as the eros effect provides a valuable framework for understanding spontaneous global uprisings, Katsiaficas has acknowledged that the concept has remained underdeveloped. Spontaneous Combustion provides an introduction to the eros effect along with a series of elaborations, applications, and critical rejoinders concerning its implications. A truly interdisciplinary venture, the book features contributions from cutting-edge scholars and activists on the frontlines of today's struggles.

Foreword Peter Marcuse Introduction Jason Del Gandio and AK Thompson Section I: The Eros Effect 1. Remembering May '68: An Interview with George Katsiaficas AK Thompson 2. Eros and Revolution George Katsiaficas 3. From Marcuse's "Political Eros" to the Eros Effect: A Current Statement George Katsiaficas Section II: Extensions and Elaborations 4. Eros in a One-Dimensional Society: Katsiaficas, Marcuse, and Me Arnold L. Farr 5. Rethinking the Eros Effect: Sentience, Reality, and Emanation Jason Del Gandio 6. Revolt as Reason, Reason as Revolt: On the Praxis of Philosophy from Below Richard Gilman-Opalsky 7. The Eros Effect and the Embodied Mind Jack Hipp Section III: Case Studies 8. Kindling for the Spark: Eros and Emergent Consciousness in Occupy Oakland Emily Brissette and Mike King 9. Eros Effect as Emergency Politics: Empathy, Agency, and Network in South Korea's Sewol Ferry Disaster Gooyong Kim and Anat Schwartz 10. Climatology of the Eros Effect: Notes from the Japanese Archipelago Sabu Kohso Section IV: Rejoinders 11. Feminism and the Eros Effect Nina Power 12. Waves of Protest, the Eros Effect, and the Social Relations of Diffusion Lesley Wood 13. Eros Effect or Biological Hatred? AK Thompson Afterword Douglas Kellner Contributors Index