A 1996 book I have just been exposed to argues Marx beginning his withdrawal from Hegel before the first edition of *Capital* (e.g. the subsumption discussion was REMOVED -- the part which the Vintage edition ADDED back). Subsequent editions and interest in Russia sustained the change in direction. This is NOT an Althusserian arguement, but in some senses consistent with Althusser. To give you a taste, White says that one cannot judge an author out of the context of his predecessors and the language used by those in his/her environment. So with Hegel and his immediate predecessors, and so with Marx. Up to the mid-1860s, Marx grounded the movement of history in philosophy. Afterwards, as he proceeds through editions of Capital Volume 1 and toward deeper interest in Russia, we see him moving (not completed before his death) toward a conception of socialism grounded not in philosophy (Hegel's Universal, Particular, Individual) but in terms of ancient communities . White argues that Engels and Plekhanov fought off this change in direction, and established DM and thus philosophy as the basis of socialism. There is extensive commentary on Marx and Chernyshevsky and Sieber, also on Kovalevsky and on the drafts to Vera Zasulich. Also, on Hegel, the revisions of Marx's texts throughout his work, Engels, Plekhanov, and a little on Struve. He points to 8 versions of Volume 2 noting that the first draft begins in 1865 but that Marx was never able to come to grips with the full theoretical consequences of his change in direction. On p. 210 he places the 2nd German edition Afterword comment by Marx on Hegel in context. On Marx on Mikhaylovsky White calls attention to Marx writing that the latter "feels he absolutely must metamorphose my historical sketch of the genesis of capitalism in Western Europe into a historico-philosophical thoery of the universal path is people is fated to tread" (written end 1878/early 1879, but unpublished until 1888, translated into Russian by Danielson from French original). A weak review by Sean Sayers of the book appears in Hist. Mat. #5. Has anyone read this book and have reactions? Paul Z. *********************************************************************** Paul Zarembka, editor, RESEARCH IN POLITICAL ECONOMY at ******************** http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/PZarembka
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