Description
Book SynopsisThis book defends the Marxist theory of history through, first, a critique of its empiricist and postmodern critics, second, a practical demonstration of the power of Marxist historical writings, and, third, a survey of the powerful and influential methodological debates between Marxists.
Trade ReviewThis is a useful contribution to the literature on historiography and a welcome change from the more nihilistic of postmodern approaches…. (It) will be valuable to students of historiography and those seeking guidance to various schools of Marxism.
Paul Blackledge has attempted a brave and long overdue project… this is overall an impressive book worthy of serious study. Tribute must be paid to the author's scholarship and impressive range
This book is a welcome contribution to the body of literature devoted to the discussion of Marxist historiography. It is a rich text, very well researched and well-written. It contains a great deal of material and touches on a wide-range of issues with admirable economy of expression.
Paul Blackledge ... contributes importantly to the growing literature in the revival of serious studies in historical materialism. In five long chapters he takes the reader on a fascinating journey ... One comes away from Blackledge’s Reflections with a strong sense of the power and potential of Marxist historiography and historical analysis.
[Blackledge’s Reflections on the Marxist Theory of History] derives its energy from a deep understanding of Marxist scholarship
[Reflections on the Marxist Theory of History] is a useful critical survey of the major debates within Marxist historiography, particularly in the Anglophone world.
Blackledge has produced a valuable guide to the arguments that surround the Marxist theory of history, one that will be a vital reference point for socialists involved in these debates.
Blackledge’s book is an excellent starting point for anyone interested in using Marxism to understand history. For a work of theory it is remarkably concise and readable. Reflections on the Marxist Theory of History therefore has tremendous value not just for historians, but also for anyone who thinks the study of the past should inform our struggles to shape the future.”
Reflections [on the Marxist Theory of History] is a significant resource. It is a cogent defence of the contribution of Marxist historians to the discipline, from Marx to the present via Trotsky’s History of the Russian Revolution, Geoffrey de St Croix’s Class Struggles in the Ancient World, and the British Marxist historians Hill, Hobsbawm and Thompson. In the face of current academic hostility to theoretical interpretations of historical events it is a powerful argument for historical materialism as a critical tool to interpret the past.
Blackledge’s reflections are a readable and very competent introduction to ... debates among Marxists about the character of modes of production and the transition from feudalism to capitalism, and about the roles of social structure and human agency in making history, as well as Marxist historical theory’s relationship to postmodernity
-- .
Table of ContentsPreface and acknowledgements
1. Marxism and history
2. Marx, Engels and historical materialism
3. Historical materialism: From the Second to the Third Internationals
4. Modes of production and social transitions
5. Structure, agency and the struggle for freedom
Conclusion – The Present as History: Marxism and postmodernity
