The idea of the imagination is as evocative as it is elusive. Not only does the imagination allow us to project ourselves beyond our physical and temporal limits, it also allows us to envision the future, individually and collectively. The radical imagination, then, is that spark of difference, desire and discontent that can be fanned into the flames of social change. Yet what precisely is the imagination and what might make it “radical”? How can it be fostered and cultivated? How can it be studied and what are the possibilities and risks of doing so?

This book seeks to answer these questions at a crucial time. As we enter into a new cycle of struggles marked by the crisis of social reproduction, scholar-activists Haiven and Khasnabish explore the processes and possibilities for cultivating the radical imagination in dark times.

The Radical Imagination is a lively and crucial intervention in radical politics, social research, social change and the collective visions and cultures that inspire them.

Max Haiven is Research Chair in culture, media, and social justice at Lakehead University. His books include Crises of Imagination, Crises of Power, Cultures of Financialization, and The Radical Imagination.

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Alex Khasnabish is a writer, researcher and teacher committed to collective liberation living in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, on unceded and unsurrendered Mi’kmaw territory. He is a professor in sociology and anthropology at Mount Saint Vincent University. His research focuses on radical imagination, radical politics, social justice and social movements.

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