This collection of essays focuses on a period when several disparate and localized struggles occurred which are significant in revealing wider unities that existed among the peasantry. David Hardiman first traces changing trends in the way the peasantry has been viewed by historians, from the colonial era to recent times. He then emphasizes the "community" consciousness of peasants, which is then redefined within the context of their specific struggles. He thus demarcates particular areas of resistance based on specific relationships of domination and subordination, each with a distinct character and chronology. Each localized, isolated resistance is thus unified in being directed against those outside the peasant community.