Marxism and philosophy in the twentieth century : a defense of vulgar Marxism /

Is Marxism still a useful or even a tenable position? Hudelson (University of Minnesota--Duluth) argues that it is, but not in either of its two common 20th-century forms. He holds both Marxist-Leninism and humanistic Marxism to be misguided interpretations. What is viable is the sort of "vulgar" Marxism that dominated the Second International at the turn of the century and has reappeared in the last decade as analytical Marxism. He sees in Marxism not so much a philosophy as a social science whose centerpiece is the theory of capitalism. To develop these themes he discusses in a clear and insightful way the historical development of this century's Marxisms and what he judges as their main philosophical weaknesses. More positively, he contends that Marx's economics is an empirical science in a standard Western sense. Although he is obviously familiar with the range of Marxist literature and presupposes some familiarity with it, he does not overwhelm the reader with details. Useful to advanced undergraduates, but only for libraries that seek to cover Marxist thought in depth. -G. J. Dalcourt, Seton Hall University