Pedagogy of Commitment

This new book, constructed from Paulo Freire’s writings near the end of his life, is characterized by the eloquence of his dreams—dreams that constituted the utopia underlying Freire’s lifelong work. Freire challenges all educators to create Circles of Dialogues, or reflective spaces, for passionate and critical reflection that is coherent and humanizing, favoring the oppressed peoples of the world.

The chapters, crafted toward the end of the twentieth century, reflect Freire’s deep concern with the assault by neoliberal policies on the basic democratic rights of the dispossessed, as he argues for the right and facility of the people to take power by reinventing power democratically. Freire’s critical reflections were prescient of the twenty-first century’s revolts and denunciations of autocratic and antidemocratic policies during the Arab Spring, the Occupy movement, and other courageous demonstrations for social justice throughout the world. Once more, Freire challenges our conscience in accessible, deep, thought-provoking writings that urge us to rehumanize popular education, employing “critical reflection steeped in history, [and] a more critical knowledge of how society works and functions.” (From the Publisher)