Volume 32, Number 7 · April 25, 1985
Low Marx
By Andrzej Walicki
Against Fragmentation: The Origins of Marxism and the Sociology of Intellectuals
by Alvin W. Gouldner
Oxford University Press, 333 pp., $27.95
It should be obvious that Marxism is not what its founders thought it to be. It is neither a 'scientific' socialism, based upon knowledge of the objective laws of history and sharply opposed to utopianism, nor is it the ideological expression of the proletariat of advanced capitalist countries. Some people still believe that it is a means of universal human emancipation but, in spite of the growing number of Marxists, the grounds for such a belief are becoming weaker and weaker. The historical record of the states and political parties that adopted Marxism as their official ideology can hardly be used to support idealistic views on the potential of Marxism for human emancipation. And it is very doubtful whether the widespread phenomenon of so-called Western Marxism (as opposed to both classical and Soviet Marxism) can be sufficiently explained by the intrinsic appeal of its lofty ideals and universalist aspirations.
Review, 3760 words
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