Jay Rothermel
10th April 2009, 04:53
http://www.socialistaction.org/auciello35.htm
The Meaning of Marxism
/by Joe Auciello / February 2009/
/Paul D’Amato, "The Meaning of Marxism," (//Chicago//: Haymarket Books, 2006), 254 pp., $12./
Visit independent, left-wing bookstores like Busboys and Poets in Washington, D.C., or the Peace and Justice Bookstore in Burlington, Vt., and you will eventually notice something peculiar. Their shelves include no Marx, Engels, Lenin, Luxemburg, Trotsky or Mao. Writers like Naomi Klein, Amy Goodman, and Michael Moore are stocked in abundance; you’ll also find some Chomsky, Zinn, and even Che Guevara, but little or nothing else from the Marxist tradition.
Given the relative unavailability of revolutionary literature in popular bookstores, today’s emerging generation of young, radical fighters could find it difficult to connect with the socialist past that inspired earlier generations of the left. The consequence will be felt in the depth and breadth of their political analysis and their appreciation for socialist organization.
There are, however, positive counter-trends: websites like www.marxists.org (http://www.marxists.org/) could not have existed a generation or two ago, and its texts are easily available—for those who know to look.
Another positive sign and link to the revolutionary tradition is the publication of a book like "The Meaning of Marxism." It is an expression of the small but growing interest in socialist ideas once thought to be erased along with the Soviet Union.
Paul D’Amato emphatically disagrees with that prevailing wisdom: "… try as the pundits may to bury him—Marx keeps resurfacing. His ideas are alive because his indictment of capitalism—though first penned in the 1840s—is still confirmed on a daily basis." These words were written before the financial crisis erupted in 2008 and before workers in a Chicago factory showed that, by banding together and fighting back, victories could be gained.
The few short years since "The Meaning of Marxism" was published have given some justification to its optimistic theme: "Marxism is experiencing a rebirth."
This book is specifically intended as an introductory volume for today’s radicalizing youth, the kind of people who would march in an antiwar demonstration and would want to know more about the socialist ideas they might encounter there.
The topics in this relatively short book are comprehensive, including explanations of Marxist methodology, economic theory, the development of the working class, and the struggle against all forms of oppression. One chapter, "Capitalism and the Environment," would not have appeared in an earlier work of this type. The struggle against environmental destruction has become a necessary addition to the Marxist program.
The style of the book is simple and straightforward, conversational but not colloquial. It assumes no prior knowledge but does not talk down to the reader. Those new to Marx can find his language dense and difficult, so the paraphrase that accompanies direct quotations is quite helpful. Marxist concepts are sufficiently explained with ample reference not only to the classic texts of socialism but to numerous examples from contemporary life.
Nonetheless, a central element of this book is problematic. "The Meaning of Marxism" cannot be recommended without some serious reservations. The author identifies Marxism in the present day as the politics of what is known as the "international socialist tendency," represented in the United States by the International Socialist Organization.
This dispute arose about the class nature of the Soviet Union, which the ISO defines as bureaucratic state capitalism as opposed to Trotsky’s theory of a "degenerated workers’ state." The terminology has consequences in contemporary political practice.
Adhering to the state-capitalist theory pits the ISO against the revolutionary government in Cuba: "While Cuba’s sovereignty needs to be defended against U.S. intervention, we should not on those grounds offer political support for Castro’s regime." In fact, according to the ISO tradition, Cuba has "nothing to do with socialism." Therefore, the ISO favors a working-class revolt against the Cuban government.
(This position is spelled out more directly and in greater detail in Paul D’Amato’s article, "Cuba: Image and Reality" in the January-February 2007 issue of International Socialist Review, issue 51.)
The author’s political bias extends to the first part of a "Further Reading" list, which is unnecessarily narrow and partisan. All of the recommended writers are past or present leaders of the ISO tendency with one exception—Sidney Lens, author of "The Forging of the American Empire"—which is reprinted by the ISO’s publishing house, Haymarket Books. The unspoken assertion here is that contemporary Marxism is synonymous with the state-capitalist tradition.
A better, more expansive alternative for further reading is Paul LeBlanc’s "From Marx to Gramsci: A Reader in Revolutionary Marxist Politics." This volume includes a 100-page overview and explication of Marxism and well-chosen readings from Marx and Engels, Luxemburg, Lenin, Trotsky, and Gramsci. Also, Ernest Mandel’s "An Introduction to Marxist Economic Theory" is indispensable. Copies of both volumes are available from Haymarket Books.
No single introductory work is sufficient to explain Marxist theory and the history of class struggle and revolution in the long century after Marx’s death. Still, "The Meaning of Marxism" will prove to be quite useful for anyone who is beginning to think that a better world is necessary and possible.
-
The Meaning of Marxism
/by Joe Auciello / February 2009/
/Paul D’Amato, "The Meaning of Marxism," (//Chicago//: Haymarket Books, 2006), 254 pp., $12./
Visit independent, left-wing bookstores like Busboys and Poets in Washington, D.C., or the Peace and Justice Bookstore in Burlington, Vt., and you will eventually notice something peculiar. Their shelves include no Marx, Engels, Lenin, Luxemburg, Trotsky or Mao. Writers like Naomi Klein, Amy Goodman, and Michael Moore are stocked in abundance; you’ll also find some Chomsky, Zinn, and even Che Guevara, but little or nothing else from the Marxist tradition.
Given the relative unavailability of revolutionary literature in popular bookstores, today’s emerging generation of young, radical fighters could find it difficult to connect with the socialist past that inspired earlier generations of the left. The consequence will be felt in the depth and breadth of their political analysis and their appreciation for socialist organization.
There are, however, positive counter-trends: websites like www.marxists.org (http://www.marxists.org/) could not have existed a generation or two ago, and its texts are easily available—for those who know to look.
Another positive sign and link to the revolutionary tradition is the publication of a book like "The Meaning of Marxism." It is an expression of the small but growing interest in socialist ideas once thought to be erased along with the Soviet Union.
Paul D’Amato emphatically disagrees with that prevailing wisdom: "… try as the pundits may to bury him—Marx keeps resurfacing. His ideas are alive because his indictment of capitalism—though first penned in the 1840s—is still confirmed on a daily basis." These words were written before the financial crisis erupted in 2008 and before workers in a Chicago factory showed that, by banding together and fighting back, victories could be gained.
The few short years since "The Meaning of Marxism" was published have given some justification to its optimistic theme: "Marxism is experiencing a rebirth."
This book is specifically intended as an introductory volume for today’s radicalizing youth, the kind of people who would march in an antiwar demonstration and would want to know more about the socialist ideas they might encounter there.
The topics in this relatively short book are comprehensive, including explanations of Marxist methodology, economic theory, the development of the working class, and the struggle against all forms of oppression. One chapter, "Capitalism and the Environment," would not have appeared in an earlier work of this type. The struggle against environmental destruction has become a necessary addition to the Marxist program.
The style of the book is simple and straightforward, conversational but not colloquial. It assumes no prior knowledge but does not talk down to the reader. Those new to Marx can find his language dense and difficult, so the paraphrase that accompanies direct quotations is quite helpful. Marxist concepts are sufficiently explained with ample reference not only to the classic texts of socialism but to numerous examples from contemporary life.
Nonetheless, a central element of this book is problematic. "The Meaning of Marxism" cannot be recommended without some serious reservations. The author identifies Marxism in the present day as the politics of what is known as the "international socialist tendency," represented in the United States by the International Socialist Organization.
This dispute arose about the class nature of the Soviet Union, which the ISO defines as bureaucratic state capitalism as opposed to Trotsky’s theory of a "degenerated workers’ state." The terminology has consequences in contemporary political practice.
Adhering to the state-capitalist theory pits the ISO against the revolutionary government in Cuba: "While Cuba’s sovereignty needs to be defended against U.S. intervention, we should not on those grounds offer political support for Castro’s regime." In fact, according to the ISO tradition, Cuba has "nothing to do with socialism." Therefore, the ISO favors a working-class revolt against the Cuban government.
(This position is spelled out more directly and in greater detail in Paul D’Amato’s article, "Cuba: Image and Reality" in the January-February 2007 issue of International Socialist Review, issue 51.)
The author’s political bias extends to the first part of a "Further Reading" list, which is unnecessarily narrow and partisan. All of the recommended writers are past or present leaders of the ISO tendency with one exception—Sidney Lens, author of "The Forging of the American Empire"—which is reprinted by the ISO’s publishing house, Haymarket Books. The unspoken assertion here is that contemporary Marxism is synonymous with the state-capitalist tradition.
A better, more expansive alternative for further reading is Paul LeBlanc’s "From Marx to Gramsci: A Reader in Revolutionary Marxist Politics." This volume includes a 100-page overview and explication of Marxism and well-chosen readings from Marx and Engels, Luxemburg, Lenin, Trotsky, and Gramsci. Also, Ernest Mandel’s "An Introduction to Marxist Economic Theory" is indispensable. Copies of both volumes are available from Haymarket Books.
No single introductory work is sufficient to explain Marxist theory and the history of class struggle and revolution in the long century after Marx’s death. Still, "The Meaning of Marxism" will prove to be quite useful for anyone who is beginning to think that a better world is necessary and possible.
-