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Karl Marx's Theory of Revolution
Karl Marx's Theory of Revolution, Volume 1: State and Bureaucracy
Volume I of Hal Draper’s definitive and masterful study of Marx’s political thought, which focuses on Marx’s attitude toward democracy, the state, intellectuals as revolutionaries, and much, much more.
This series, Karl Marx’s Theory of Revolution, represents an exhaustive and definitive treatment of Marx’s political theory, policy, and practice. Marx and Engels paid continuing attention to a host of problems of revolution, in addition to constructing their “grand theory.” All these political and social analyses are brought together in these volumes, as the author draws not only on the original writings of Marx and Engels but also on the sources that they used in formulating their ideas and the many commentaries on their published work.
Draper’s series is a massive and immensely valuable scholarly undertaking. The bibliography alone will stand as a rich resource for years to come. Yet despite the scholarly treatment, the writing is direct, forceful, and unpedantic throughout, and will appeal to the beginning student as much as the advanced reader.
This series, Karl Marx’s Theory of Revolution, represents an exhaustive and definitive treatment of Marx’s political theory, policy, and practice. Marx and Engels paid continuing attention to a host of problems of revolution, in addition to constructing their “grand theory.” All these political and social analyses are brought together in these volumes, as the author draws not only on the original writings of Marx and Engels but also on the sources that they used in formulating their ideas and the many commentaries on their published work.
Draper’s series is a massive and immensely valuable scholarly undertaking. The bibliography alone will stand as a rich resource for years to come. Yet despite the scholarly treatment, the writing is direct, forceful, and unpedantic throughout, and will appeal to the beginning student as much as the advanced reader.
272 pages, Paperback
First published December 1, 1976
About the author
Hal Draper
68 books31 followersHal Draper (born Harold Dubinsky) was an American socialist activist and author who played a significant role in the Berkeley, California Free Speech Movement. He is known for his extensive scholarship on the history and meaning of the thought of Karl Marx.
Draper was a lifelong advocate of what he called "socialism from below", self-emancipation by the working class, in opposition to capitalism and Stalinist bureaucracy, both of which, he held, practiced domination from above. He was one of the creators of the Third Camp tradition, a form ("the form", according to its adherents) of Marxist socialism.
Draper was a lifelong advocate of what he called "socialism from below", self-emancipation by the working class, in opposition to capitalism and Stalinist bureaucracy, both of which, he held, practiced domination from above. He was one of the creators of the Third Camp tradition, a form ("the form", according to its adherents) of Marxist socialism.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
September 15, 2018
Possibly the most illuminating writing on Marx ever written
March 24, 2007
A historiography of Marx's politics. Very awesome. Hal Draper is a no-bullshit writer, which is definitely a rarity among the Marxist Left.
October 31, 2022
Skip the first part of this book (it is a decent biography of Marx, but nothing out of the ordinary): from page 189 onwards, Draper makes a good analysis of the state and it's role in different modes of production from a marxist point of view.
It has some mistakes here and there (sometimes even suggesting that Marx was some kind of anarchist), but in the end the premise of the book is accomplished: Draper develops a marxist theory of the state and the role of bureaucracy.
It has some mistakes here and there (sometimes even suggesting that Marx was some kind of anarchist), but in the end the premise of the book is accomplished: Draper develops a marxist theory of the state and the role of bureaucracy.
September 13, 2024
A tour de force introduction to Marx' ideas on the state from prehistory right up to the Asiatic Mode of Production. Would recommend to anyone who wants to become acquainted with the fundamentals of Marx and Engels. It reads as something of a more developed "State and Revolution" — meticulously analysing Marx development from a hardline democrat to Communism, drawing on quotes and excerpts of Marx and Engels writings across their political lives.
July 28, 2024
Overwhelmingly complete. While some of what Draper has written has become outdated, his work is certainly the most complete that I am aware of.
November 4, 2025
This is an amazing book: it is essentially a guided collection of primary sources, looking specifically at Marx's political writings. I bought the book to understand Marx's concept of Bonapartism better, having just read The 18th Brumaire, and it helped a lot. It is exceptionally well written, with almost no information which does not have a rightful place in this collection (though I personally skipped his Appendix on Marx's poetry - even then it was the only thing I skipped)
The main drawback of the book is that Draper refuses to try and draw any real conclusions from his analysis, beyond other analyses (ex: Bukharin's definition of class as a 'role in production') being incorrect. Having read this volume, I couldn't help but think that there are 'existential' or 'virtue ethic' elements in Marx's thought - in that he wanted classes to be self directed, not rely on other classes' leadership, and believed that certain conditions produced good political virtues. I also came to find these concepts, and Marx's political analysis in general, to be in conflict with his 'grand' economic theories in many ways.
But, perhaps that is the point of the book - to get readers to draw their own conclusions?
The main drawback of the book is that Draper refuses to try and draw any real conclusions from his analysis, beyond other analyses (ex: Bukharin's definition of class as a 'role in production') being incorrect. Having read this volume, I couldn't help but think that there are 'existential' or 'virtue ethic' elements in Marx's thought - in that he wanted classes to be self directed, not rely on other classes' leadership, and believed that certain conditions produced good political virtues. I also came to find these concepts, and Marx's political analysis in general, to be in conflict with his 'grand' economic theories in many ways.
But, perhaps that is the point of the book - to get readers to draw their own conclusions?
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews