Why Read Marx Today? / Edition 1

by Jonathan Wolff

Overview

The fall of the Berlin Wall had enormous symbolic resonance, marking the collapse of Marxist politics and economics. Indeed, Marxist regimes have failed miserably, and with them, it seems, all reason to take the writings of Karl Marx seriously.
Jonathan Wolff argues that if we detach Marx the critic of current society from Marx the prophet of some never-to-be-realized worker's paradise, he remains the most impressive critic we have of liberal, capitalist, bourgeois society. The author shows how Marx's main ideas still shed light on wider concerns about culture and society and he guides the reader through Marx's notoriously difficult writings. Wolff also argues that the value of a great thinker does not depend on his or her views being true, but on other features such as originality, insight, and systematic vision. From this perspective, Marx still richly deserves to be read.
Why Read Marx Today? reinstates Marx as an important critic of current society, and not just a figure of historical interest.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780192805058
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
Publication date:	10/30/2003
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	144
Sales rank:	595,432
Product dimensions:	7.68(w) x 5.02(h) x 0.37(d)

About the Author

Jonathan Wolff is Professor of Philosophy at University College London.

Table of Contents

ContentsMarx's Life and WorksThe Plan of this Book1: Early WritingsReligionThe Philosophy of Historical MaterialismLabour and AlienationMoney and CreditLiberalismEmancipation2: Class, History, and CapitalHistoryThe Economics of CapitalismThe Transition to CommunismThe Nature of Communism3: AssessmentEarly WritingsTheory of HistoryEconomicsCommunismHuman NatureConclusionGuide to References and Further Reading

Editorial Reviews

"An engaging read. The author...is a particularly skillful elucidator of political philosophy. In his book, he argues that Marx was misunderstood and that the great man was right about far more than he is given credit for."—The Economist

From the Publisher