Marxism and Medieval Studies

This recent volume on Marxist historiography edited by Nodl, Węcowski, and Zupka vividly depicts the relationship between academia and research approaches in Medieval Studies in eastern Europe on the one hand, and political regimes and (national) ideologies on the other. The back cover effectively summarizes how the book engages with historical materialist and Marxist approaches to archaeology and history in the 1950s to 1970s (in fact, the volume also thoroughly discusses historiography in eastern European countries through the 1980s). Here we read, for instance, “This approach aims to distinguish between pseudo-Marxism as an ideological tool on the one hand and Marxism in the form of historical materialism as a way to interpret the medieval world on the other.” According to the editors, their research on eastern European Medieval Studies is new and unique in its historiographical and interdisciplinary approach (18). Any translations to English in this volume are readable with only occasional mistakes that do not cause issues for the reader. The book offers invaluable insight particularly for those in the field of Medieval Studies not familiar with the differences between western European or American approaches to the field of study and the eastern European approach, which has always considered the feudal system and early rebellions as paradigmatic examples of Marxist historical materialism and dialectics

Feudalism · Historical materialism · Historiography · Ideology · Marxist philosophy · Materialism · Globalization and political ideologies · Historical and Archaeological Studies · Historical Geopolitical and Social Dynamics