On Your Marx
Relinking Socialism and the Left
Randy Martin
Why-and how-does Marx speak to our day? Seeking to reestablish the link between Marx, socialism, and the Left, this book negotiates the common ground between orthodox marxism and postmarxism to show how Marx can elaborate the present. More than a claim for his relevance, this book is also a forceful statement about how theory relates to political project and organization.
“This extremely provocative book offers the most sensitive postmodernist reading of Marx that I have ever seen . . . an extraordinary accomplishment.” Bertell Ollman, New York University
Why-and how-does Marx speak to our day? Seeking to reestablish the link between Marx, socialism, and the Left, this book negotiates the common ground between orthodox marxism and postmarxism to show how Marx can elaborate the present. More than a claim for his relevance, this book is also a forceful statement about how theory relates to political project and organization.
What, Randy Martin asks, does Marx have to say to the discourses of radical democracy, postmodernism, and globalization-all of which purport to solve problems that emerge in Marx’s writings? A reading of Marx can in fact disclose the limitations of the contemporary modes of criticism, identifying the difficult conceptual problems that cannot be avoided or overcome.
Using readings of Marx to restage contemporary political discussions, On Your Marx reengages orthodox and postmarxist understandings in a critical and constructive conversation. In doing so, the book points to powerful new alliances between cultural and political theorists and activists, opening new possibilities for mobilization and social justice.
$26.00 paper ISBN 978-0-8166-3896-3
$72.00 cloth ISBN 978-0-8166-3895-6
312 pages, 5 7/8 x 9, 2001
Randy Martin is associate dean of faculty and interdisciplinary programs and professor of art and public policy at Tisch School of the Arts, New York University. He is also the coeditor of the journal Social Text.
“This extremely provocative book offers the most sensitive postmodernist reading of Marx that I have ever seen . . . an extraordinary accomplishment.” Bertell Ollman, New York University
Martin’s work is an intriguing and proactive re-reading of Marx, presenting compelling interpretations of his work and its relevance.
The Front Table, Seminary Co-op
A highly ambitious project.
Science & Society
Contents
Acknowledgments
Introduction: Missing Marx?
PART I. Marx among Others
1. Rereading Marx: A Critique of Recent Criticisms
2. Fragmentation and Fetishism: The Postmodern in Marx
3. ReadingCapital for the Socializing Politics of Globalization
PART II. Rethinking the Crisis of Socialism
4. Autonomy versus Ensemble as Socialist Principles
5. Deconstructing Collapse
6. Resurfacing Socialism: Resisting the Appeals of Tribalism and Localism
PART III. Left Turns
7. Dead Center? Rethinking the Middle for a Different Left
8. Left at the Post
Notes
Index