This book explores a variety of interconnected themes central to contemporary Marxist theory and its further development as a critical social theory. Championing the critique of political economy as a critical theory of society and rejecting Marxian economics as a contradiction in terms, it argues instead that economic categories are perverted social categories, before identifying the sheer unrest of life - the struggle to make ends meet - as the negative content of the reified system of economic objectivity. With class struggle recognised as the negative category of the cold society of capitalist wealth, which sees in humanity a living resource for economic progress, the author contends that the critique of class society finds its rational solution in the society of human purposes, that is, the classless society of communist individuals. A theoretically sophisticated engagement with Marxist thought, A Critical Theory of Economic Compulsion will appeal to scholars of social and political theory with interests in critical theory and post-capitalist imaginaries.

Against the background of growing uncertainty about the future development of capitalism, and in the face of war, terror and poverty, this book asks: What do we have to know to prevent misery? What can we do to achieve conditions of human dignity? And what must we hope for? The volume argues that all social life is essentially practical and explores the central most important value of human dignity. It discusses practical consequences in relation to the theory of revolution and contemporary anti-globalization struggles. Targeted towards advanced undergraduate courses and taught post-graduate courses in the field of politics, sociology, political philosophy and new social movement studies, it should also be welcomed in the study of critical theory, Marxism, labour studies and revolutionary thought.

Against the background of growing uncertainty about the future development of capitalism, and in the face of war, terror and poverty, this book asks: What do we have to know to prevent misery? What can we do to achieve conditions of human dignity? And what must we hope for? The volume argues that all social life is essentially practical and explores the central most important value of human dignity. It discusses practical consequences in relation to the theory of revolution and contemporary anti-globalization struggles. Targeted towards advanced undergraduate courses and taught post-graduate courses in the field of politics, sociology, political philosophy and new social movement studies, it should also be welcomed in the study of critical theory, Marxism, labour studies and revolutionary thought.

The SAGE Handbook of Frankfurt School Critical Theory expounds the development of critical theory from its founding thinkers to its contemporary formulations in an interdisciplinary setting. It maps the terrain of a critical social theory, expounding its distinctive character vis-a-vis alternative theoretical perspectives, exploring its theoretical foundations and developments, conceptualising its subject matters both past and present, and signalling its possible future in a time of great uncertainty. Taking a distinctively theoretical, interdisciplinary, international and contemporary perspective on the topic, this wide-ranging collection of chapters is arranged thematically over three volumes: Volume I: Key Texts and Contributions to a Critical Theory of Society Volume II: Themes Volume III: Contexts This Handbook is essential reading for scholars and students in the field, showcasing the scholarly rigor, intellectual acuteness and negative force of critical social theory, past and present.

While Adorno has tended to be read as a critic of the administered world and the consumer industry rather than a Marxist, Adorno and Marx establishes Adorno’s negative dialectics as fundamental for understanding Marx’s critique of political economy. This conception of the critique of political economy as a critical theory marks both a radical departure from traditional Marxist scholarship and from traditional readings of Adorno’s work and warns against identifying Adorno with Marx or Marx with Adorno. Rather, it highlights the intersection between Adorno’s critical theory and Marx’s critique of political economy that produces a critical theory of economic objectivity that moves beyond Marxian economics and Adornonian social theory. Adorno and Marx offers an ingenious account of critical social theory. Its subversion of the economic categories of political economy contributes to the cutting-edge of contemporary social theory and its critique of social practice.

The politics of international debt have received increasing attention in recent years. However, discussion of the politics of money has focused on Latin American and 'third' world countries. So far there has been little treatment of the politics of scarce money and of money as a political category in relation to 'advanced' countries. The central theme of the book is the limitations and constraints on state action which arise from the relation between the (nation) state and the global flow of money.

The politics of international debt have received increasing attention in recent years. However, discussion of the politics of money has focused on Latin American and 'third' world countries. So far there has been little treatment of the politics of scarce money and of money as a political category in relation to 'advanced' countries. The central theme of the book is the limitations and constraints on state action which arise from the relation between the (nation) state and the global flow of money.

The collection brings together proponents and critiques of the post- Fordist thesis. The debate focuses on the relation between crisis and societal as well as political restructuring. The collection provides an introduction to, and a critique of, the post-Fordist debate. The articles represent the fields of political economy, state theory, value theory, Marxist philosophy, and general questions of Marxist methodology. The volume includes, alongside the original debate between Werner Bonefeld, Bob Jessop and John Holloway, hitherto unpublished material by a wide range of authors.

The collection brings together proponents and critiques of the post- Fordist thesis. The debate focuses on the relation between crisis and societal as well as political restructuring. The collection provides an introduction to, and a critique of, the post-Fordist debate. The articles represent the fields of political economy, state theory, value theory, Marxist philosophy, and general questions of Marxist methodology. The volume includes, alongside the original debate between Werner Bonefeld, Bob Jessop and John Holloway, hitherto unpublished material by a wide range of authors.

Through a series of interconnected articles, this book makes available a range of international authors for an English readership. Topics covered include: Marzism and political economy, historical materialism, dialectics, state theory, class crisis, fetishism and the periodization of capitalist development. Picking up where the debates of the 1970s left off, these collections assess current debates in Marxist theory and project an "open" Marxism by way of critical response to the determinism and positivism which characterize much of contemporary left-wing thought.

In this study, distinguished international contributors project an 'open' Marxism - a rejection of the determinism and positivism which characterise so much of contemporary left-wing thought. Topics covered in the two volumes include Marxism and political economy, historical materialism, dialectics, state theory, class, fetishism and the periodisation of capitalist development.

German ordoliberalism originated at the end of the Weimar Republic (1918-1933) in a context of hyper-inflation, depression, mass unemployment and social unrest. For ordoliberalism, a free economy is premised on a sound political, legal, social and moral framework to secure its cohesion. The role of the state is to ensure a liberal economic order. Ordoliberalism is a contested account of post-neoliberal political economy: some argue that it offers a more restrained and socially just market order; others, in complete contrast, that is a form of authoritarian liberalism and that it is the theoretical foundation for the austerity politics that the EU has actively promoted in recent years. Foucault discusses ordoliberalism at length in The Birth of Biopolitics, and Bonefeld's book provides a thought-provoking companion to those lectures by offering a more comprehensive investigation of the theoretical foundation of ordoliberal thought and its historical and theoretical contexts.

German ordoliberalism originated at the end of the Weimar Republic (1918-1933) in a context of hyper-inflation, depression, mass unemployment and social unrest. For ordoliberalism, a free economy is premised on a sound political, legal, social and moral framework to secure its cohesion. The role of the state is to ensure a liberal economic order. Ordoliberalism is a contested account of post-neoliberal political economy: some argue that it offers a more restrained and socially just market order; others, in complete contrast, that is a form of authoritarian liberalism and that it is the theoretical foundation for the austerity politics that the EU has actively promoted in recent years. Foucault discusses ordoliberalism at length in The Birth of Biopolitics, and Bonefeld's book provides a thought-provoking companion to those lectures by offering a more comprehensive investigation of the theoretical foundation of ordoliberal thought and its historical and theoretical contexts.

Subversive thought is none other than the cunning of reason when confronted with a social reality in which the poor and miserable are required to sustain the illusion of fictitious wealth. Yet, this subsidy is absolutely necessary in existing society, to prevent its implosion. The critique of political economy is a thoroughly subversive business. It rejects the appearance of economic reality as a natural thing, argues that economy has not independent existence, expounds economy as political economy, and rejects as conformist rebellion those anti-capitalist perspectives that derive their rationality from the existing conceptuality of society. Subversion focuses on human conditions. Its critical subject is society unaware of itself. This book develops Marx's critique of political economy as negative theory of society. It does not conform to the patterns of the world and demands that society rids itself of all the muck of ages and founds itself anew.

Subversive thought is none other than the cunning of reason when confronted with a social reality in which the poor and miserable are required to sustain the illusion of fictitious wealth. Yet, this subsidy is absolutely necessary in existing society, to prevent its implosion. The critique of political economy is a thoroughly subversive business. It rejects the appearance of economic reality as a natural thing, argues that economy has not independent existence, expounds economy as political economy, and rejects as conformist rebellion those anti-capitalist perspectives that derive their rationality from the existing conceptuality of society. Subversion focuses on human conditions. Its critical subject is society unaware of itself. This book develops Marx's critique of political economy as negative theory of society. It does not conform to the patterns of the world and demands that society rids itself of all the muck of ages and founds itself anew.

Publication of the first two volumes of Open Marxism has renewed interest in a theoretical tradition which, during the 1980s seemed to have lost momentum. The series aims to 'open' the theoretical categories of Marxism to actuality, to renew old debates and to project new ones. Within the framework of 'openness', the authors of this long-awaited third volume address a wide range of topics which have become classic in Marxist debate, including dialectics, epistemology, social emancipation, value theory, historical materialism and the relationship between feminism and Marxism. provides a forum for open debate on the key theoretical questions of the decade. The contributors argue that sociological heritage which grew up under the banner of scientific Marxism has had a detrimental effect on the movement of socialist thinking. The 'emancipation of Marx' implies both freeing Marx from the understanding of the 20th Century and the freeing of the human spirit from the control of capital. The contributors have been selected from an international base and none have previously contributed to the series. The issues covered are of contemporary relevance and, along with the first two volumes, this third examination of 'open Marxism' provides the basis for a radical rethink on restructuring the world in which we live.

In this study, distinguished international contributors project an 'open' Marxism - a rejection of the determinism and positivism which characterise so much of contemporary left-wing thought. Topics covered in the two volumes include Marxism and political economy, historical materialism, dialectics, state theory, class, fetishism and the periodisation of capitalist development.

Through a series of interconnected articles, this book makes available a range of international authors for an English readership. Topics covered include: Marzism and political economy, historical materialism, dialectics, state theory, class crisis, fetishism and the periodization of capitalist development. Picking up where the debates of the 1970s left off, these collections assess current debates in Marxist theory and project an "open" Marxism by way of critical response to the determinism and positivism which characterize much of contemporary left-wing thought.

While Adorno has tended to be read as a critic of the administered world and the consumer industry rather than a Marxist, Adorno and Marx establishes Adorno's negative dialectics as fundamental for understanding Marx's critique of political economy. This conception of the critique of political economy as a critical theory marks both a radical departure from traditional Marxist scholarship and from traditional readings of Adorno's work and warns against identifying Adorno with Marx or Marx with Adorno. Rather, it highlights the intersection between Adorno's critical theory and Marx's critique of political economy that produces a critical theory of economic objectivity that moves beyond Marxian economics and Adornonian social theory. Adorno and Marx offers an ingenious account of critical social theory. Its subversion of the economic categories of political economy contributes to the cutting-edge of contemporary social theory and its critique of social practice.

This title was first published in 2002. On the eve of the first centenary of Lenin's, What is to be Done?, this book provides a critical assessment of the theory and practice of revolution at the start of the new millennium. The volume shows the pertinence of revolution in our post-socialist world and provides a focus for critical social inquiry, revealing the significance of the theory of revolution and its practical meaning. By identifying the weaknesses of orthodox accounts into social and political change, it offers a timely reassessment of the left-communist critique of Leninism and shows its contemporary relevance. Against the background of the globalization of capital, anti-capitalism has to dream revolution. The book shows the practical and theoretical meaning of this dream: the society of the free and equal.