ABSTRACT
Logical and historical objections to the classical Marxist thesis of the withering away of the state are not as compelling as they seem. The thesis presupposes a contradictory relationship between abstract notions of self-government and the hierarchical social and political institutions of liberal capitalism. This contradictory relationship cannot emerge as long as Marxists embrace political models like the commune state which have an ambiguous relationship to the liberal tradition. It is only with the disintegration of an authoritarian Soviet state under the liberalizing impact of Gorbachev’s reforms that the withering away thesis can become theoretically plausible and practically interesting.
