Individualistinen anarkismi viittaa useisiin anarkistisiin suuntauksiin, jotka asettavat yksilön ja hänen tahtonsa etusijalle kaikkiin ulkoisiin tekijöihin nähden: näitä ovat ryhmät, yhteisöt, valtiot, perinteet ja ideologiset järjestelmät."What do I mean by individualism? I mean by individualism the moral doctrine which, relying on no dogma, no tradition, no external determination, appeals only to the individual conscience."Mini-Manual of Individualism by Han Ryner"I do not admit anything except the existence of the individual, as a condition of his sovereignty. To say that the sovereignty of the individual is conditioned by Liberty is simply another way of saying that it is conditioned by itself.""Anarchism and the State" in Individual Liberty

Individualistinen anarkismi viittaa ryhmään eri filosofioita, joilla on toisistaan eroavia näkemyksiä. Ensimmäinen individualistis-anarkistinen ajattelija oli William Godwin, muita muun muassa Henry David Thoreau (transsendentalismi)"Paralelamente, al otro lado del atlántico, en el diferente contexto de una nación a medio hacer, los Estados Unidos, otros filósofos elaboraron un pensamiento individualista similar, aunque con sus propias especificidades. Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862), uno de los escritores próximos al movimiento de la filosofía trascendentalista, es uno de los más conocidos. Su obra más representativa es Walden, aparecida en 1854, aunque redactada entre 1845 y 1847, cuando Thoreau decide instalarse en el aislamiento de una cabaña en el bosque, y vivir en íntimo contacto con la naturaleza, en una vida de soledad y sobriedad. De esta experiencia, su filosofía trata de transmitirnos la idea que resulta necesario un retorno respetuoso a la naturaleza, y que la felicidad es sobre todo fruto de la riqueza interior y de la armonía de los individuos con el entorno natural. Muchos han visto en Thoreau a uno de los precursores del ecologismo y del anarquismo primitivista representado en la actualidad por Jonh Zerzan. Para George Woodcock(, esta actitud puede estar también motivada por una cierta idea de resistencia al progreso y de rechazo al materialismo creciente que caracteriza la sociedad norteamericana de mediados de siglo XIX."Voluntary non-submission. Spanish individualist anarchism during dictatorship and the second republic (1923-1938), Josiah Warren ("itseomistajuus"), Lysander Spooner ("luonnonoikeus"), Pierre-Joseph Proudhon (mutualismi), Herbert Spencer ("yhtäläisen vapauden laki")Freeden, Micheal. Ideologies and Political Theory: A Conceptual Approach. Oxford University Press. . pp. 313–314, Max Stirner (egoistinen anarkismi) sekä nykyään muun muassa David Friedman ja Murray Rothbard (anarkokapitalismi eli markkina-anarkismi)Adams, Ian. 2002. Political Ideology Today. p. 135. Manchester University Press; Ostergaard, Geoffrey. 2003. Anarchism. In W. Outwaite (Ed.), The Blackwell Dictionary of Modern Social Thought. p. 14. Blackwell Publishing.

Kuuluisa 1800-luvun individualistinen anarkisti Benjamin R. Tucker katsoi: "Jos yksilöllä on oikeus hallita itseään, kaikki ulkoinen hallinto on tyranniaa."

Yleiskatsaus Varhaisia individualistisia anarkisteja olivat William Godwin, Pierre-Joseph Proudhon ja Max Stirner.

Individualistisen anarkismin haaroilla oli vähän yhteisiä tekijöitä; sellaisia olivat kuitenkin seuraavat:

1. Individualismi, yksilöön keskittyminen ja yksilön asettaminen kaikenlaisten sosiaalisten ja ulkoisten konstruktioiden ja entiteettien kuten moraalisuuden, ideologian, sosiaalisten tapojen, uskonnon, metafysiikan, aatteiden tai toisten tahdon edelle."En la vida de todo único, todo vínculo, independientemente de la forma en que éste se presente, supone una cadena que condiciona, y por tanto elimina la condición de persona libre. Ello supone dos consecuencias; la libertad se mantendrá al margen de toda categoría moral. Este último concepto quedará al margen del vocabulario estirneriano, puesto que tanto ética como moral serán dos conceptos absolutos que, como tales, no pueden situarse por encima de la voluntad individual. La libertad se vive siempre al margen de cualquier condicionamiento material o espiritual, “más allá del bien y del mal” como enunciará Nietzsche en una de sus principales obras. Las creencias colectivas, los prejuicios compartidos, los convencionalismos sociales serán, pues, objeto de destrucción."A.3.1 What are the differences between individualist and social anarchists?"Stirner himself, however, has no truck with "higher beings." Indeed, with the aim of concerning himself purely with his own interests, he attacks all "higher beings," regarding them as a variety of what he calls "spooks," or ideas to which individuals sacrifice themselves and by which they are dominated. First amongst these is the abstraction "Man", into which all unique individuals are submerged and lost. As he put it, "liberalism is a religion because it separates my essence from me and sets it above me, because it exalts 'Man' to the same extent as any other religion does to God . . . it sets me beneath Man." Indeed, he "who is infatuated with Man leaves persons out of account so far as that infatuation extends, and floats in an ideal, sacred interest. Man, you see, is not a person, but an ideal, a spook." [p. 176 and p.79] Among the many "spooks" Stirner attacks are such notable aspects of capitalist life as private property, the division of labour, the state, religion, and (at times) society itself. We will discuss Stirner's critique of capitalism before moving onto his vision of an egoist society and how it relates to social anarchism."[A.3.1 What are the differences between individualist and social anarchists?]

2. Vallankumous-käsitteen torjuminen tai varauksellinen suhtautuminen siihen: vallankumous nähdään massaliikkeenä, joka voi tuottaa uusia hierarkioita. Sen sijaan nämä anarkistit suosivat evolutiivisia keinoja, joissa anarkiaa (ulkoisen vallan puuttumista) lisätään vaihtoehtoisilla kokeilla esimerkiksi osuustoiminnalla, liitoilla tai kommuuneilla ja koulutuksella, jotka voidaan toteuttaa jo nykyoloissa riippumatta hallituksen toiminnasta. Myös sosialistisen anarkismin vallankumouksellinen suora toiminta torjutaan, mukaan lukien pommit ja salamurhat. "The first is in regard to the means of action in the here and now (and so the manner in which anarchy will come about). Individualists generally prefer education and the creation of alternative institutions, such as mutual banks, unions, communes, etc.... Such activity, they argue, will ensure that present society will gradually develop out of government into an anarchist one. They are primarily evolutionists, not revolutionists, and dislike social anarchists' use of direct action to create revolutionary situations."A.3.1 What are the differences between individualist and social anarchists?"Toda revolución, pues, hecha en nombre de principios abstractos como igualdad, fraternidad, libertad o humanidad, persigue el mismo fin; anular la voluntad y soberanía del individuo, para así poderlo dominar."La insumisión voluntaria. El anarquismo individualista español durante la dictadura y la segund arepública (1923–1938).

3. Näkemys siitä, että suhteet toisiin ihmisiin tai asioihin saavat perustua vain yksilön omaan haluun ja voivat olla niin ohimeneviä ja kompromissittomia kuin halutaan, koska individualistisessa anarkismissa yleensä hylätään vaatimus yksilön uhrautumisesta. Näin Max Stirner suosittelee egoistien liittoja kuten ystävyys- ja rakkaussuhteita sekä leikkejä korostaen kuitenkin egoismin laajaa tulkintaa, jossa arvostetaan toisia yksilöitä ja näiden ainutlaatuisuutta: Finalmente, y este es un tema poco resuelto por el filósofo bávaro, resulta evidente que, a pesar de todo culto a la soberanía individual, es necesario y deseable que los individuos cooperen. Pero el peligro de la asociación conlleva la reproducción, a escala diferente, de una sociedad, y es evidente que en este contexto, los individuos deban renunciar a buena parte de su soberanía. Stirner propone “uniones de egoístas”, formadas por individuos libres que pueden unirse episódicamente para colaborar, pero evitando la estabilidad o la permanencia."La insumisión voluntaria. El anarquismo individualista español durante la dictadura y la segunda república (1923–1938)"The unions Stirner desires would be based on free agreement, being spontaneous and voluntary associations drawn together out of the mutual interests of those involved, who would "care best for their welfare if they unite with others." [p. 309] The unions, unlike the state, exist to ensure what Stirner calls "intercourse," or "union" between individuals. To better understand the nature of these associations, which will replace the state, Stirner lists the relationships between friends, lovers, and children at play as examples. [No Gods, No Masters, vol. 1, p. 25] These illustrate the kinds of relationships that maximise an individual's self-enjoyment, pleasure, freedom, and individuality, as well as ensuring that those involved sacrifice nothing while belonging to them. Such associations are based on mutuality and a free and spontaneous co-operation between equals. As Stirner puts it, "intercourse is mutuality, it is the action, the commercium, of individuals." [p. 218] Its aim is "pleasure" and "self-enjoyment." Thus Stirner sought a broad egoism, one which appreciated others and their uniqueness, and so criticised the narrow egoism of people who forgot the wealth others are:

"But that would be a man who does not know and cannot appreciate any of the delights emanating from an interest taken in others, from the consideration shown to others. That would be a man bereft of innumerable pleasures, a wretched character... would he not be a wretched egoist, rather than a genuine Egoist?... The person who loves a human being is, by virtue of that love, a wealthier man that someone else who loves no one." [No Gods, No Masters, vol. 1, p. 23]"What are the differences between individualist and social anarchists?.

Erojakin on paljon. Talouskysymyksissä individualististen anarkistien kantoja ovat muun muassa mutualismi (Proudhon, Emile Armand, varhainen Benjamin Tucker; kannattivat markkinoita paitsi että rajoittivat omistusoikeutta), Egoistinen anarkismi (Stirner, John Henry Mackay, Lev Chernyi, myöhäinen Tucker, suhtautuivat kielteisesti omistamiseen ja markkinoihin), anarkokommunismi (Albert Libertad, illegalismi) ja anarkokapitalismi (Gustave de Molinari, David Friedman, Murray Rothbard; kannattivat vapaata markkinataloutta ja yksityisomistusta).

Sosiaaliset kokeilut