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Social Banditry is a category for books—both fiction and nonfiction—about outlaws who break the law yet are celebrated by ordinary people as defenders of justice against oppressive authorities. Drawing on the concept popularized by historian Eric Hobsbawm, these works explore how figures such as Robin Hood, Pancho Villa, Ned Kelly, or Phoolan Devi emerge from unequal, often rural or colonial contexts, enforce a “moral economy,” and become symbols of resistance through legend and community support. Titles in this category include historical studies, biographies, novels, and folklore that probe codes of honor, redistribution and vengeance, loyalty networks, and the fraught boundary between crime and legitimacy. Common themes include inequality, state power, solidarity, betrayal, and the making of myth—inviting readers to question who defines justice and why certain bandits become heroes.

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