Ethical Marxism and its Radical Critics

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-viii

   PDF

2. Introduction: Marx, Ethics and Ethical Marxism

   • Lawrence Wilde

   Pages 1-9

3. The Essentialist Marx

   • Lawrence Wilde

   Pages 10-30

4. Ethics, Justice, Freedom

   • Lawrence Wilde

   Pages 31-50

5. Affluent Alienation and its Contestation

   • Lawrence Wilde

   Pages 51-76

6. Against Productivism: Habermas and Gorz

   • Lawrence Wilde

   Pages 77-102

7. Feminism and Marx’s Humanism

   • Lawrence Wilde

   Pages 103-121

8. Mastering Nature

   • Lawrence Wilde

   Pages 122-141

9. Ethics and Politics

   • Lawrence Wilde

   Pages 142-154

10. Back Matter

    Pages 155-189

    PDF

Ethical Marxism and its Radical Critics argues that Marx's conception of human essence is the foundation for an ethic of liberation which permeates his social theory. It testifies to his significant debt to Greek philosophy and culture. Wilde examines how his humanistic ethic was developed by Marcuse and Fromm, and how it has been rejected by Habermas and Gorz. He also explores reservations expressed from feminist and ecological standpoints. The book has been revised in the light of these criticisms, and offers insights into how progress may be made towards a socialist ethical community.

• ethics
• feminism
• Habermas
• Jürgen Habermas
• Karl Marx
• liberty
• philosophy
• politics
• socialism

`A very successful attempt to rescue an ethical democratic Marx and to compare and contrast this with recent post-Marxist trends. There is a succinct and concise exposition of Marx's early humanism. This political ethic is defended against representative examples of Marx's radical critics by showing it to be compatible with elements of the Frankfurt school, influential analyses of post-industrial society, green approaches and feminism.' - David McLellan, Professor of Political Theory, University of Kent

'...belongs on the reading list of any course dealing with the theory and practice of politics, to give to the next generation a sense of the power of Marx's political thinking.' - Ian Forbes, History of Political Thought

• The Nottingham Trent University, UK

  Lawrence Wilde

LAWRENCE WILDE is Reader in Political Theory in the Department of Economics and Politics at The Nottingham Trent University, where he has taught since 1979. He is author of Marx and Contradiction (Aldershot and Brookfield USA: Avebury, 1989) and Modern European Socialism (Aldershot and Brookfield USA: Dartmouth, 1994) and co-editor with Mark Cowling of Approaches to Marx (Milton Keynes and Philadelphia: Open University Press, 1989).

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