Marxist Class Theory for a Skeptical World

by Raju J Das

In this important work of scholarship sure to reshape the landscape of critical social sciences, Raju Das offers a critique of many of the influential radical theories of class, making a spirited defense of class theory. Marxist Theory of Class for a Skeptical World critically discusses Analytical Marxist and Post-structuralist Marxist theories of class and persuasively argues for an alternative approach that is rooted in the ideas of Marx and Engels, as well as Lenin and Trotsky. Das offers a materialist-dialectical foundation for class theory, conceptualizing class at both the transhistorical level and at the level of capitalism.

694 pages, Paperback

Published July 31, 2018

Reviews

[Roberto Yoed · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is only redeemable because of it's critiques to analytic marxism and poststructuralism, but aside from that, this gargantuan book really doesn't offer anything new.

Here is a list of some rookie mistakes I noted:
-Not reading the eighteenth brumaire of louis bonaparte! (which if Raju had done, he wouldn't have said that "traditional marxism" only considers two social class on it's analysis).
-Not differentiating between dialectical materialism and historic materialism (this can be explained because of Raju adherence to Trotsky and not Stalin).
-Poor understanding of David Harvey's political postulates (granted: he ain't a revolutionary, but he also isn't an antiproletarian).
-Reductionism of class consciousness (not taking into account ideology nor alienation).
-State reductionism (while it is true that the State is a power mechanism, he doesn't go in depth with how State can be sided with the bourgeoisie, in capitalism, or in favour of the proletarian, in socialism).

And many others errors that shouldn't be present on a book of this size.

[JLew McD · Rating 5 out of 5]

Das, in his mission to revive "classical Marxism," is one of the most important Marxist thinkers today, and this book is the culmination of his work thus far