Perry Anderson, Considerations on Western Marxism (New Left Books, 1976; Verso 1994) This influential Marxist text by the longtime editor of the radical New Left Review studies the development of 20th Century Marxist theory. Anderson defends the political and economic "Classical" tradition of Lenin and Trotsky against the aesthetic and cultural "Western" Marxist tradition of Lukacs and the Frankfurt School. The Economist labeled the book "by far the best guide to modern Marxism," though E.J. Hobbsbawm accused Anderson of idealizing pre-1914 Marsixm. Anderson's weakness, Hobbsbawm said in his New Statesman review, was his assumption that Western Marxism "can return to the main highway after its prolonged detour." MORE: The Voice of the Turtle reviews Anderson's career Institute of International Studies interview The Historical Pessimism of Perry Anderson Article by Anderson in the New Left Review taking stock of the journal's forty year history, examining how the world has changed and how the Left has adapted its position |
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