1st Edition
Trajectories of Neo-Marxism Development, Debates, and Currents
1. Introduction to Western Marxism
2. Ernst Bloch’s Utopian Philosophy: From Hegel to Marx and Beyond
3. Georg Lukacs and the Rise of Western Marxism
4. Antonio Gramsci's Reconstruction of Marxism
5. Karl Korsch‘s Revolutionary Historicism
6. Brecht's Marxist Aesthetic: The Korsch Connection
7. Fredrick Pollock and State Capitalism
8. Herbert Marcuse's Reconstruction of Marxism
Conclusion: Neo-Marxism in the Contemporary Era
Biography
Douglas Kellner is Distinguished Research Professor at UCLA and is author of many books on social theory, politics, history, and culture, including Media Culture: Cultural Studies, Identity, and Politics in the Contemporary Moment (2e, 2020), American Nightmare: Donald Trump, Media Spectacle, and Authoritarian Populism (2016), and American Horror Show: Election 2016 and the Ascent of Donald J. Trump (2017), as well as Editor of the multi-volume Collected Papers of Herbert Marcuse (2017) and Herbert Marcuse and the Crisis of Marxism (1984). He has just published Adventures in Marxist Theory: Toward a Reconstruction of Marxism with Routledge, to which Trajectories of Neo-Marxism is a follow-up.
“In this book, Douglas Kellner demonstrates a superb understanding of history, biography, and the currents of neo-Marxist theory. The book provides an excellent discussion of a broad range of neo-Marxist theorists typically covered in courses (Frankfurt School – Horkheimer, Adorno, Marcuse, Habermas, as well as Gramsci). But, the book also enables one to stretch such a course to include others – Bloch and Lukacs and Althusser, and lesser-known theorists – Korsch and Pollock. There are not a lot of books like this that provide the coverage, scope, and context of such a roster of thinkers and contributors to this tradition, and in such an accessible and engaging way.”
Timothy Black, Professor of Sociology, Case Western Reserve University
“Douglas Kellner’s new book, Trajectories of Neo-Marxism, offers a comprehensive examination of the development of neo-Marxist thought throughout numerous historical periods. The author is one of the foremost experts regarding this material and is able to offer a deep, textual-based reading of this corpus of work. Furthermore, the volume places theorists in conversation with one another. This is useful in that it highlights distinctions between different theorists, illuminating tensions within critical theory and western Marxism, and identifies what is theoretically useful in different theorist’s work. The book is an important contribution to the subject as it places the development of these modes of thought in relation to one another. In doing so, the author helps highlight key questions and analyses that have emerged and changed over time."Daniel Auerbach, Assistant Professor of Sociology, University of Wyoming
