Question about Diamat (DM)

[Lamanov]

Would you argue that Marx should not "be held responsible" for creation of "Dialectical Materialism" as it existed in the XX ct, as something induced post mortem, nor even Engels (regardless of his "laws" which he mentions in Anti-Duhring, Dialectics of Nature and Socialism: Utopian and Scientific), or -- on the contrary -- the whole "dialectic" scheme should just be left in the dust, so any intention on clarification of the matter should be ignored??


It seems to me that this question really needs to be asked, because, with reflection on prior discussions on Diamat, I realized that not very much people stand outside the black-and-white perspective, and to be quite honest, argumentation on neither side satisfied me to point of agreeing.

I think that in the last month I've read some stuff that made me take up the "third road". As far as I'm concerned for the moment, I could argue that Marx stands very far away from almost every "dialectical materialist" philosophical construction built within the frames of "Marxist" theory in XXth ct, and to be more precise - starting with Plekhanov as the first person who is to be analyzed from this perspective.

Anyway, if I'm to be challenged, I would probably "plee my case". But I'm primarily interested in your opinions, especially of "anti-diamatists".

[redstar2000]

It would seem to me to be a "scholastic dispute"...based on a search of some very dusty archives by some very dedicated folks, ferreting out obscure and hardly remembered publications from the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

A "noble task"...but one which few moderns would much care about.

Perhaps useful for Ph.D. candidates looking for a thesis topic. :lol:

http://www.websmileys.com/sm/cool/123.gif

[Rosa Lichtenstein]

DJ, forgive me, but who were you addressing your questions to?

If to my good self, I could not follow much of what you were trying to ask, sorry.

Speaking for myself, however, I have no time for anything written by Hegel (except perhaps his ethical theory), or any dialecticians since (of all flavours and varieties).

Why this is so is too complex to go into here; that why I set up my site.

http://www.anti-dialectics.org

Marx cannot be held responsible for DM, even though he did apply Hegelian concepts to class society (but he derived his core ideas about change from the Scottish materialists, Fergusson, Millar, Smith and (partly) Hume -- who also influenced Hegel).

DM was a creation of Engels -- in his dotage (old age) --, Dietzgen and Plekhanov.

But, even if it had have been invented by Marx, it would still be nonsensical, only that would also detract from Marx's genius (who I would like to think would have rejected it).