ABSTRACT

This volume, which initially appeared in 1970, constitutes a major set of statements by leading social scientists, historians, and philosophers to explain the continuing impact of Marxism 150 years after its emergence. The second edition is graced with a stunning new 50 page essay by the editor on the Asiatic mode of production-what has been called the Achilles heel of Marxism by some and its limiting case by others., Marxism: The Inner Dialogues covers a wide range of basic issues and problems arising from what has been said for, against, and about Marxism. This is a rich and systematic collection of writing by the foremost authorities on the subject in the world. The book provides the most inclusive and lasting analysis of Marxist thought available. Professor Curtis has confronted current problems in Marxist studies in the context of the classic concerns of western thought., In addition to new material, the book includes discussions of the meaning fulness of Marxist theory, Marxist doctrine as ideology, the unity or lack thereof in Marxism, claims to the true inheritance of Marx, alienation in Marxist thought, the ethical bases of Marxism, the sociological worth of Marxist analysis, the validity of the dialectic, the materialist conception of history, Marxism and economic analysis, political theory and the proletariat, socialism and state power, and Marxist doctrine and modernization., Marxism: The Inner Dialogues, with contributions from major figures such as George Lichtheim, Lewis Coser, T.B. Bottomore, Daniel Bell, Alasdair Maclntyre, Oskar Lange, Ralf Dahrendorf, Seymour Martin Lipset, and Robert Tucker, among others, provides a highly useful compendium that can be extremely valuable in courses in general political theory and the theories driving modern social movements.

chapter |15 pages

Introduction

part One|88 pages

Political Theory, Social Science, or Ideology?

part |17 pages

From Theory to Ideology

part |23 pages

Marxism: Consistency or Revisionism?

part |26 pages

Marxism and Political Modernization

chapter 5|12 pages

The Points of the Compass

chapter 6|12 pages

Marxism, West and East

part |18 pages

Is Marxism a Social Science?

part Two|68 pages

Marx: Moralist and Humanist

part |21 pages

Marxist Ethics

chapter 9|9 pages

The Ethics of Marxism

chapter 10|10 pages

The Primitive Ethic of Karl Marx

part |23 pages

Alienation and Humanism

chapter 11|13 pages

A Critique of Alienation

chapter 12|8 pages

Marx as Humanist

part |20 pages

Marxism and Religion

chapter 14|8 pages

Marxists and Christians

part Three|67 pages

Classic Marxist Themes: Philosophy, History, and Economics

part |19 pages

The Dialectical Process

chapter 15|9 pages

Against the Marxian Dialectic

part |18 pages

The Materialist Conception of History

chapter 17|10 pages

Marxism as a Philosophy of History

chapter 18|6 pages

A New Framework for Social History

part |27 pages

The Contribution of Marxism to Economics

part Four|135 pages

Class Conflict, Revolution, and Political Power

part |19 pages

Class and Class Conflict

chapter 22|9 pages

The Concept of Social Class

chapter 23|8 pages

A Sociological Critique of Marx

part |20 pages

Revolution or Peaceful Change?

chapter 24|10 pages

The Proletariat and Revolution

chapter 25|5 pages

Is Gradual Change Possible?

chapter 26|3 pages

Ambivalence about Gradual Change

part |20 pages

Is Dictatorship Necessary?

chapter 27|12 pages

The Dictatorship of the Proletariat

chapter 28|6 pages

The Proletarian State

part |73 pages

The Future of the State