James C. Scott’s studies on power dynamics and resistance shaped social science and gave rise to resistance studies
NEW YORK – Professor James C. Scott, a widely influential social scientist whose work on power, resistance, and the failures of top-down government schemes reshaped political thought, passed away on July 19 at his home in Durham, Connecticut. He was 87 years old.
Professor Scott, a Sterling Professor Emeritus of Political Science at Yale University, also taught in the Department of Anthropology and the School of Forestry and Environmental Studies before his retirement in 2022. His passing was confirmed by Yale University.
Influence and Legacy
Regarded as one of the great intellectuals of his time, Prof Scott’s broad scholarly contributions were marked by his iconoclastic approach to social science. He gained a diverse following, ranging from free-market libertarians to leftist theorists. His work, which made complex ideas accessible to the general public, won admiration across political divides.
Prof Scott’s research on Southeast Asian rural ethnic groups and their forms of resistance to power led to the establishment of resistance studies, a new academic field. His influential book, Weapons of the Weak: Everyday Forms of Peasant Resistance (1985), detailed the subtle, often overlooked acts of resistance by Malay farmers against colonial pressures. His fieldwork in Malaysia, considered a risk to his career at the time, became one of his proudest achievements.
Seeing Like a State
Prof Scott’s most widely recognized work, Seeing Like a State: How Certain Schemes To Improve the Human Condition Have Failed (1998), examined failed government programs, such as collectivized farms in the Soviet Union and the building of Brazil’s capital, Brasília. He argued that such schemes, rooted in bureaucratic rationalism—what he called “high modernism”—clashed with the practical wisdom of local people, leading to disastrous consequences.
The book was lauded by critics and has been described as one of the most profound analyses of state-driven improvement programs in modern times. Despite critiques of his unorthodox methodology, Prof Scott remained confident in his approach, which focused on understanding resistance to authority through subtle, everyday acts.
A Life of Challenge and Discovery
Prof Scott’s work consistently challenged traditional political science and brought attention to the everyday forms of resistance that shaped history. His legacy lives on through his groundbreaking research, which shifted the focus of social science from grand political theories to the smaller, often invisible acts of defiance that contribute to the shaping of societies.
