Description

Book Synopsis
Historian and political thinker Ellen Meiksins Wood argues that theories of "postmodern" fragmentation, "difference", and contingency can barely accommodate the idea of capitalism, let alone subject it to critique. In this book she sets out to renew the critical programme of historical materialism by redefining its basic concepts and its theory of history in original and imaginative ways, using them to identify the specificity of capitalism as a system of social relations and political power. She goes on to explore the concept of democracy in both the ancient and modern world, examining its relation to capitalism, and raising questions about how democracy might go beyond the limits imposed on it.

Trade Review
Reading a Wood essay is a shock to the system, demanding the reader take a position, often leaving you invigorated and slightly bruised in the process. -- Michael Watson * Red Pepper *

Democracy Against Capitalism: Renewing Historical

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    A Paperback / softback by Ellen Meiksins Wood

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      View other formats and editions of Democracy Against Capitalism: Renewing Historical by Ellen Meiksins Wood

      Publisher: Verso Books
      Publication Date: 02/02/2016
      ISBN13: 9781784782443, 978-1784782443
      ISBN10: 1784782440
      Also in:
      Business, Finance & Law Political economy Democracy Far-left political ideologies and movements

      Description

      Book Synopsis
      Historian and political thinker Ellen Meiksins Wood argues that theories of "postmodern" fragmentation, "difference", and contingency can barely accommodate the idea of capitalism, let alone subject it to critique. In this book she sets out to renew the critical programme of historical materialism by redefining its basic concepts and its theory of history in original and imaginative ways, using them to identify the specificity of capitalism as a system of social relations and political power. She goes on to explore the concept of democracy in both the ancient and modern world, examining its relation to capitalism, and raising questions about how democracy might go beyond the limits imposed on it.

      Trade Review
      Reading a Wood essay is a shock to the system, demanding the reader take a position, often leaving you invigorated and slightly bruised in the process. -- Michael Watson * Red Pepper *

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