Disaster and the millennium
Michael Barkun (Author)
The world of millenarian movements holds a special fascination. The idea of transforming an existing imperfect society overnight into a perfect utopia has a powerful appeal, and over and over, in widely scattered areas and epochs, groups have followed the call of a messiah figure to usher in a beautiful new world. What causes these movements to arise? Do they conform to any common patterns? In this absorbing study of unconventional human behavior, Michael Barkun develops the original thesis that millenarian movements are consequences of local disasters. He presents many examples of millenarian groups in action in both modern and primitive societies and reviews existing theories and explanations. After delineating the characteristics of the disaster situations that produce them, he examines the psychological effects of disasters, describes the conversion process, and grapples with the question whether such movements are rational. He concludes with an analysis of the future millenarianism in the modern world. The longing for utopia is a durable human quality. Both general readers and scholars interested in problems of change, violence, and social upheaval will find Mr. Barkun's wide-ranging study provocative. Publisher
Print Book, English, 1974
Yale University Press, New Haven, 1974