The Practical Contradictions of Marxism

Bibliographic Data

ID2371631
AuthorsDavid L Harvey (Department of Sociology University of Nevada, Reno), David Harvey (0000-0003-3703-7336, University of Nevada, Reno, corresponding author)
Year1998
Volume24
Issue1-2
Pages1-36
Publication date1998-04-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueCritical Sociology (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0896-9205 • E-ISSN: 1569-1632
PublisherSAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1177/089692059802400103
OpenAlexW1997986690
LanguageEN
Citations received4
References cited27

For more than a century proletarian socialism privileged the work-ing class and its welfare, while simultaneously reaching out to the exploited and oppressed of all races and creeds. ’ This is no longer the case. The privileging of working class interests is now challenged from within the ranks of proletarian socialism itself. For a generation many of the left’s most gifted spokespeople have urged the abandonment of its traditional commitments in favor of a &dquo;decentered alliance&dquo; of nar-row veto groups. Unfortunately, these New Social Movements-some-times called the &dquo;cultural left&dquo;-have often promoted programs that alienate socialism from its traditional working class constituency. This alienation is now so advanced that in many progressive quarters work-ers are defined as the enemy: i.e., as being white, male, sexist, racist, homophobic, authoritarian, and conservative in their political leanings. The seriousness of this schism was recently underscored in the Nation. An inadvertent confrontation occurred when the advocates of working class populism squared off against proponents of the New Social Movements. The confrontation was sparked by Michael Moore when he wrote a short article entitled &dquo;Is the Left Nuts? (Or is it Me?)&dquo; (Moore 1997: 16-18). In the article Moore chastised intellectuals on the left for isolating themselves from the common folk and their problems, for holing themselves up in self-imposed, intellectual ghettos, and for rallying to causes having little to do with the plight of the average work-ing class family. The style of course was pure Michael Moore: Is it me, or is the left completely nuts? I won’t bore you with the details of the October Media and Democracy Congress, but suffice it to say that the left is still in fine form, completely ignoring anything that really mat-ters to the American public. I’m convinced there’s a good number of you who are simply addicted to listening to yourselves talk and talk and talk

Capitalism · Economic system · Economics · Epistemology · Neoclassical economics · Political science · Politics · Positive economics · Social science · Sociology · Law · Philosophy · Political Economy and Marxism

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