Before we begin to look at post-Marxism, we need a wider context for our discussion. Post-Marxism, as the name implies, came out of Marxism as
originally conceived, or what is sometimes called “classical Marxism.” Let’s take a few moments to get our bearings.
The early days
Marxism is, of course, the brainchild of Karl Marx (1818-1883), a German thinker who ended his days in relative poverty and obscurity in London.
During his life, his works (chief among them the Communist Manifesto
and Das Kapital
) had limited impact, although he did achieve some
influence among the members of the First and Second Internationals, which were societies of left-leaning workers formed in the mid-19th century. The
failed 1871 revolt of the Paris Commune saw the first attempt to put socialist ideas into practice, but it wasn’t until the 1917 Russian Revolution
that the world really began to accept that Marxism was a force to be reckoned with.
Marx’s original theories were further developed by V.I. Lenin, the leader of the Russian Revolution, resulting in “Marxism-Leninism.” Lenin,
unlike Marx, had to deal with the practical realities of revolution, and this shaped his philosophy. The Leninist version of Marxism put stress on
developing a professional revolutionary class, or “Vanguard” (one example: yours truly) that would be wholly devoted to the struggle. Lenin also
developed the idea of global imperialism
as the final stage of capitalism. Lenin’s rule in Russia was followed by that of Stalin, who
achieved a powerful dictatorship that many saw as a betrayal of the fundamental ideals of Communism. Stalinism was characterized by the elimination of
democratic tendencies and the establishment of strong centralized control.
As communism spread across the globe in the 20th century, it underwent further mutations in the third world. Figures like Mao, Castro, Ho Chi Minh,
Che Guevara, and others are associated with so-called “Third-World Marxism,” where theories were changed to reflect the local realities.
Originally, Marx had envisioned Communism as being driven by the “proletariat,” or industrial workers. Yet third-world nations had few industrial
workers and more peasants, who thinkers like Che and Mao saw as driving Communism in their own nations. In a way, this was an inversion of classical
Marxism: Marx believed that peasants were a reactionary/traditionalist force, and that poorer nations would have to go through the process of
developing capitalism and an industrial class first before they could achieve Communism. Third-World Marxism sought to skip the step of capitalist
development altogether—something Marx would probably have disagreed with. Third-world Marxist movements also tended to be strongly nationalistic in
From a classical Marxist perspective, then, the ideas of thinkers like Mao might be criticized as being mere “revolt” overlaid with superficial
Marxist symbolism, rather than representing true communism. And yet the Third-World Marxists attained vast success in the 20th century, liberating
hundreds of millions and in many ways becoming the true face of global communism.
…and finally, onward to post-Marxism
By the middle of the 20th century, classical Marxism no longer seemed to be viable. The forms of Communism that had been successful were the
Soviet-style dictatorship of Stalin and post-Stalin leaders in the USSR, or the Third-World Marxism in China and other nations. Neither of these
strains could be said to be “purely” Marxist. What went wrong with Marx’s original theories?
Marx was a believer in economic determinism.
– the view that all of human life is driven by economics and economics alone
. He also
believed that the revolution was inevitable.
But the evidence did not support these articles of faith. In the developed world, the middle class
had grown wealthier and wealthier. Marx did not foresee the way trade unions, social programs, and other compromises between the classes would
decrease the oppression of the poor, removing much of the impetus to rebellion. Meanwhile in the third world, Communism had flourished, but not in the
way Marx had envisioned. Clearly a re-thinking of classical Marxism was called for. The thinkers who took on this task became known later as the
. Although the actual definition of who is and isn’t a post-Marxist is open to debate, we will look at some of the more
important figures, ideas, and movements below that either are post-Marxist or relate to post-Marxism.