Outrage : an anarchist memoir of the penal colony

Theft exists only through the exploitation of man by manwhen Society refuses you the right to exist, you must take itthe policeman arrested me in the name of the Law, I struck him in the name of Liberty. In 1887, Clment Duval joined the tens of thousands of convicts sent to the dry guillotine of the French penal colonies. Few survived and fewer were able to tell the stories of their life in that hell. Duval spent fourteen years doing hard laborespousing the values of anarchism and demonstrating the ideals by being a living example the entire timebefore making his daring escape and arriving in New York City, welcomed by the Italian and French anarchists there. This is much more than an historical document about the anarchist movement and the penal colony. It is a remarkable story of survival by one mans self-determination, energy, courage, loyalty, and hope. It was thanks to being true and faithful to his ideals that Duval survived life in this hell. Unlike the well-known prisoner Papillon, who arrived and dramatically escaped soon after Duval, he encouraged his fellow prisoners to practice mutual aid, through their deeds and not just their words. It is a call to action for mindful, conscious people to fight for their rights to the very end, to never give up or give in. More than just a story of a life or a testament of ideals, here is a monument to the human spirit and a war cry for freedom and justice.

This memoir of Clément Duval, a famed 19th-century French anarchist and criminal, details his sentence and eventual escape from the “dry guillotine” of the French penal colonies on Devil’s Island. In this remarkable story of survival by self-determination, courage, conviction, and hope, Duval discusses the hellish conditions endured in the penal colonies for 14 years. More than a historical document about the anarchist movement, this memoir serves as a call to action for mindful, conscious people to fight for their rights and stands as a monument to the enduring power of the human spirit.