Anarchy

The author defines anarchy as the absence of government and argues that its popular association with disorder arises from deep social habituation to authority. He traces how economic dependence, inherited servitude, education, and coercive institutions reinforce the belief that masters and the state are indispensable. The essay criticizes the State as a set of political, judicial, military, and financial structures that remove decision-making from the people and enforce obedience. It then distinguishes several meanings of the word state to expose common misunderstandings and recommends speaking of the abolition of government while imagining free social cooperation based on voluntary solidarity.