McLaren, Peter (2000). Che Guevara, Paulo Freire, and the Pedagogy of
Revolution. Lanham, Maryland & Oxford: Rowman & Littlefield.
pp. 221+xxvii
$23 (Paper) ISBN 0-8476-9533-6
Ruth Rikowski
University of Greenwich,
London
November 20, 2001
This is a very moving book, which I found to be full of hope and love.
Yes, the aim of socialism is still worthwhile; yes it is still a
wonderful dream and yes, it is still possible. These are the messages that
come through loudly and clearly throughout the book. It offers us an alternative
way of looking at the world—a way that seems to have been largely
forgotten. Life is portrayed in a different form, based on love and co-operation,
rather than competition and the infinite drive to accumulate capital that is imposed
on us all by the social relations and forces at work within the system. McLaren's
book provides us with an opportunity to reflect and to take stock of our
predicament in today's global capitalist economy.
The power of love flows throughout the book. Ana Freire in the Foreword
said that Peter's choice in choosing to write about Paulo and Che: "was surely born
in admitting that he admired Paulo and Che above all because they had created the
pedagogy of love" (p.xiv). On the chapter on Paulo Freire, McLaren notes that:
"What sets Freire apart from most other leftist educators in this era of cynical
reason, and joins him in spirit with Che, is his unashamed stress on the importance
and power of love" (p. 171).
The literary style of the author is breathtaking. One can feel what
socialism could be like through the wonderment of McLaren's writing. This makes
the book a work of radical art; providing a refreshing change from stodgier
approaches, and reminded me of the power of the socialist message that has been
conveyed by some classical works of fiction, such as the plays of Bernard Shaw.
This is not to lessen the importance of socialist works by writers that write from a
different angle—both are necessary. There is an urgent need to both deepen
and broaden Marxist theoretical analysis and to present a radical/socialist
alternative. Without this, we cannot explain the social force, the drive of capital
(that is all around us and embedded within us), and therefore we cannot hope to
overcome it.
The book is an important documentation of key events in the history of
socialist struggle, focusing on the life and works of Che Guevara and Paulo Freire.
It emphasizes their crucial contribution to the advancement of socialism, focusing
in particular on critical pedagogy. McLaren examines the similarities and
differences between Che and Freire. Che adopted guerrilla warfare tactics in the
struggle for socialism (whilst also valuing education and stimulating learning in
others in very challenging circumstances, in the very heat of battle), whereas Freire
was primarily a radical educator. The book emphasizes the benefits to be gained
from using both the machine gun and the book. McLaren explains clearly why Che
thought it was necessary to use weapons. He writes:
One might object to admiring a man who intentionally killed other human
beings. Yet it is important to remember that Che forbade torture and was involved
in executions only when the victims themselves were torturers or murderers.
(p.112)
The book is divided into three parts: Part One looks at Che: "The man in the
black beret." Part Two focuses on Paulo Freire: "The man with the gray beard."
Finally, Part Three is entitled "A pedagogy for the revolution of our time," and
considers why a truly critical pedagogy is so vital today. The book starts with a
short contribution from Joe L. Kincheloe followed by a Foreword by Ana Maria
Araójo Freire. Kincheloe emphasizes that one of McLaren's main aims throughout
the book is to prevent Freire and Guevara's legacy from being diluted and re-
interpreted along pro-capitalist lines.
In Part One McLaren focuses on the many sides of Che: his belief in
communism; his belief in the need for effective guerrilla warfare as well as some
of the methods he used; the importance which he attached to critical pedagogy; his
love of humanity and his hope. As a long-standing writer on critical pedagogy
McLaren thought it was important to focus, in particular, on Che's contribution to
critical pedagogy, as this is an area that had been neglected in the literature in the
past. McLaren says in his introduction that Che has: 'seldom, if ever . . . been
discussed at length in the educational literature on critical pedagogy' (ibid.). He
indicates that Che: 'had never been officially admitted to the court of serious
educational debate' (xxii). McLaren seeks to remedy this in his book. He explains,
for example, how Che as a guerrilla leader in Sierra Maestra gave literacy classes
to his peasant recruits and how he built schools. However, Che combined the need
for critical pedagogy with the need for revolution. Michael Lowy noted that for
Che: 'the only pedagogy that is liberating is one that enables people to educate
themselves through their revolutionary practice' (pp.79-80). In particular, McLaren
wants to highlight the fact that: 'the struggle over education is fundamentally
linked to struggles in the larger theater of social and political life' (p.105). The
effectiveness of Che's guerrilla warfare tactics is demonstrated throughout the
book. McLaren writes of Che:
Here was a man who possessed the brazen courage to set forth a
sophisticated internationalist indictment of the capitalist world powers on behalf of
the entire Third World. (p.15)
In Part Two McLaren looks at Freire. He notes that:
Paulo Freire was one of the first internationally recognized educational
thinkers who fully appreciated the relationship among education, politics,
imperialism and liberation. (p.141) [Furthermore] . . . Freire firmly believed that
educational change must be accompanied by significant transformations in the
social and political structure in which education takes place.' (p.148) [And he] . . .
has left stratified deposits of pedagogical insight upon which the future
development of progressive education can—and must—be built. (p.170)
Thus, Freire's main concern was with the need for progressive education but
this was linked to the need for social and political change. Whilst Freire himself
was against violence he also greatly admired Che. It is clear throughout the book
that McLaren is very aware and concerned about the power of capital in education,
and he says that: 'The seduction of capital is overwhelming even among the most
well-intentioned groups of progressive educators' (p.8). Those educators in the
West who do not want to blindly follow the dictates of capital need to be
particularly aware of this when designing education programs. With this in mind,
McLaren urges educators to revisit Freirean pedagogy.
In Part Three McLaren considers why a critical pedagogy is so vital today.
He notes that:
. . . Che and Freire have given us a pedagogical course of action (not to be
confused with a blueprint) for making bold steps to redress locally and globally
current asymmetrical relations of power and privilege. (p.184)
For McLaren:
. . . the inspiration for revolutionary pedagogy must be cultivated from a
shared history of struggle, a struggle that is the constant companion and outcome
of acting in and on the world, a struggle conjugated with hope, infused with
revolutionary love, and dignified by a great exertion of the ethical imagination and
human will and its infusion into the struggle for social justice. (p.202)
On the final page McLaren poignantly reminds us that: "As long as others
suffer, celebration is empty. But when collective struggle triumphs, that
is—and continues to be—a cause for joy" (p.204). And so, we must look
ahead. The book celebrates the achievements of the past, whilst offering us hope
and optimism for the future. By revisiting Che and Freire we can learn some
lessons that can assist us in our struggle for socialism in the future.
This is an important book and should be welcomed by socialists, radical
educators, critical historians, activists and all those who want to meaningfully
analyze and terminate capitalism. It rekindles hope in a social world that seeks to
destroy the grounds of hopefulness. It points towards the possibility of a fairer and
kinder form of social life, and highlights the significance of revolutionary
pedagogy for its realization.
About the Reviewer
Ruth Rikowski majored in Sociology at the University of East Anglia, UK.
She has worked in public libraries in a London borough, which included a period
as a library training officer. In 1994 she obtained an M.Sc. in Information Science,
Computerised Systems, from University College, London. Since then, she has been
working in the computerised library systems field—supporting, implementing
and maintaining systems. Ruth writes on library/information education and
training, information systems and the knowledge economy, and she has a number
of articles in information science journals.
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