Review Essay: Pedagogy, Politics and Intellectual Life: Freire in the Age of the Market, Pedagogy of Indignation

Paulo Freire is widely acknowledged as one of the most influential educationists of the twentieth century. Eight years after his death, Freire's work continues to generate considerable interest among scholars and activists across the globe. This review essay addresses some of the key questions and issues raised in a new book of previously unpublished letters and other writings by Freire: Pedagogy of Indignation (Paradigm, 2004). The review sets this book in the context of Freire's biography, his politics and his educational philosophy. Particular attention is paid to a somewhat neglected theme in commentaries on Freire's work: his stance on the roles and responsibilities of the critical intellectual. It is argued that Freire's approach to intellectual life, for all of its shortcomings and flaws, remains relevant and important in a policy environment dominated by neo-liberal agendas.