Karl Marxs Life, Ideas, and Influences: A Critical Examination on the Bicentenary (Marx, Engels, and Marxisms)

Introduction Since the latest crisis of capitalism broke out in 2008, Marx has been back in fashion, and sometimes it seems that his ideas have never been as topical, or as commanding of respect and interest, as they are today. This edited collection arises from one of the largest international conferences dedicated to the bicentenary of Marx’s birth. The volume contains 16 chapters authored by globally renowned scholars and is divided into two parts: I) On the Critique of Politics; II) On the Critique of Political Economy. These contributions, from multiple academic disciplines, offer diverse perspectives on why Marx is still so relevant for our times and make this book a source of great appeal for both expert scholars of Marx as well as students and general readers who are approaching his theories for the first time. Shaibal Gupta is the Founding Member Secretary of the Asian Development Research Institute, Patna, India. Marcello Musto is Associate Professor of Sociological Theory at York University, Canada. Babak Amini is a PhD Candidate in Sociology at the London School of Economics, London, UK. Series Foreword The Marx Revival Types of Publications Titles Published Titles Forthcoming Preface Contents Notes on Contributors List of Figures List of Tables Part I: On the Critique of Politics Heinrich Heine and Marx As Essayists: On the Genesis and the Function of the Critic-Intellectuals I. On Genesis and Functions of the Intellectuals II. The Method of Essayism in Karl Marx Bibliography Marx’s Critique of German Social Democracy: From the International to the Political Struggles of the 1870s I. The Limited Participation of the Germans in the International Working Men’s Association II. Against the “Gotha Programme” and the Social Democratic Deviation III. Political Battles at an International Level IV. The Critique of “Armchair Socialism” Bibliography Revolution and Radical Democracy: Marx Versus Post-Marxism I. Introduction II. The Modern Binary of the State and Society III. Marx’s Theory of Revolution IV. Post-Marxist Critique of Marx’s Historical Materialism V. Marx’s Critique of Post-Marxism Bibliography Marx’ Research Project As a Future Science for Emancipatory Action: A Delineation I. Introduction II. Three Introductory Methodological Remarks III. Marx’s “Value Ideas” and Critical Proletarian Communism IV. Capital As a Historic-Materialist Drama V. Open Questions Bibliography The Intimations of a Post-Capitalist Society in Marx’s Critique of Political Economy I. Where to Begin Anew in Developing an Alternative to Capitalism? II. The Humanist Content of Marx’s Value Theory of Labour III. The Expansive Vision of Freedom in Capital IV. Post-Marx Marxism Versus Marx’s Marxism Bibliography Recovering Marx: Steps Towards a Breakdance I. Recovering Marx: Stedman Jones II. Marx Returns: Barker III. Another Marx: Musto Segue ... Interval IV. In Australia: Arena V. In Australia: Intervention VI. In Australia: Thesis Eleven Bibliography On the Notion of “Workers’ Control” in Marx and Marxists (1871–1917): A Survey I. On the Idea of “Workers’ Control” II. Brief Remarks on the Historical Context III. “Workers’ Control” in Marx and the Early Marxists Karl Marx (1818–1883) Friedrich Engels (1820–1895) William Morris (1834–1896) Paul Lafargue (1842–1911) Jules Guesde (1845–1922) Daniel De Leon (1852–1914) Karl Kautsky (1854–1938) James Connolly (1868–1916) Vladimir Lenin (1870–1924) Rosa Luxemburg (1871–1919) Anton Pannekoek (1873–1960) IV. Concluding Remarks Bibliography King, Marx, and the Revolution of Worldwide Value I. Introduction II. “Approaching Spiritual Death” III. “The Glaring Contrast of Poverty and Wealth” III. “Social Stability for Our Investments” IV. “These Are Revolutionary Times” Bibliography Fetishism and Exploitation Marx - 150 and Marx 200: What Has Changed? I. Introduction II. The 150th Anniversary of Capital and the Bicentennial of Marx’s Birth, 2017–18 III. Centennial Anniversary of Capital and 150th Anniversary of Marx’s Birth in East and West Germany, 1967–68 IV. The Concept of Fetishism in the Reading of Capital Around 1968 V. An Encounter Between East and West VI. Conclusion Bibliography Part II: On the Critique of Political Economy Marx’s Observations on the Classical Theory of Interest I. Introduction II. Ricardo’s Theory of Interest III. Marx on Interest IV. Interest in a “Pure Capitalist” Economy: A “Transfer” Theory of Interest V. Conclusion Bibliography Money, Power, and Capitalism: Marx’s Theory of Money and the Contemporary State-Credit Standard I. Introduction II. Marx’s Method III. Marx on Credit Money IV. The Evolution of a State-Credit Standard V. State, Private Finance, and World Money VI. Conclusion Bibliography Marx as Evolutionary and Some “Revisionist” Implications I. Introduction II. The Evolutionary Theme Elaborated II.1. Evolutionary Processes within Capitalism II.2. The Acquisition of Proletarian Control II.3. The First Stage of Communism III. Marx as laissez-faire Conservative: The Economic Dimension IV. Aspects of Marx’s “Revisionism” and Implications for the Implementation of a Proletarian Programme VI. Concluding Remarks Bibliography Marx’s Ideas and Conceptions of Socialism in the Twenty-First Century I. Introduction: How to Interpret Marx’s Conception of Socialism II. The Twenty-First-Century Context: Financial Capitalism Globalized III. Socialism and the Law of Value IV. Markets: Their Constitutional Core and Contextual Realizations V. Markets and Their Evolution: From Product Markets to Labour Markets and Capital Markets VI. Markets and Socialist Economy VII. The Necessity of Politics Bibliography Marx’s Metaphysics of Human Labour in the Light of Sraffa: Labour Theory of Value Reconsidered I. Labour as the Ultimate Cause of Value in Classical Economics II. Surplus Value and Marx’s Metaphysics of Human Labour III. Sraffa: From Marx’s Metaphysics of Human Labour to Physics of Production IV. Some Concluding Remarks Bibliography Marx’s Prescient Theory of Centralization of Capital: Crises and an Nkrumahist Response I. Introduction II. Centralization of Capital III. Centralization of Capital: Consideration of the Evidence IV. China V. Financial Access Analysis VI. Absorption of the Periphery and China’s Rise VII. The Nkrumahist Response Bibliography Petty Production and India’s Development I. Introduction II. The “Dissolution Problematic”: Large-Scale Industry and Primitive Accumulation III. The “Conservation Problematic” and Its Logics: Resilience and Recreation IV. The Dialectic of Autonomy and Exploitation V. Petty Commodity Production and Circulation in the Development of Capitalism in India Dissolution Differentiation Incomplete Primitive Accumulation Conservation The (Re)creation of PCP Formal Subsumption and Disguised Wage Labour The Dialectic of Exploitation and Autonomy VI. PCP: What Is to Be Done? VII. Conclusion Bibliography Index Marxism is not as alive today as it was during the two preceding centuries; even now, however, Marx’s ideasideas of Karl Marx continue to engage the intellect, imagination, and conscience of humanity across the world. This edited collection brings together some of the most important contributions to one of the largest international Marxist conferences hosted in 2018 on the 200th anniversary of the birth of Karl Marx. Divided into two broad categories (economics and politics, each of which deal with a wide range of topics in Marx’s writings and intellectual legacy), the writers in this volume not only engage critically with the ideas of Marx, but also present novel approaches to the re-appropriation of Marx’s ideasthese ideas for the unique challenges of the 21st century. Taken together, this book depicts the state of research on Marx and Marxism around the world and offers new paths for researchers and activists in the coming years.