Conrad Hamilton, Matt McManus (Contributing Eds.)
Ben Burgis, Ernesto Vargas
Foreword: Daniel Tutt
"Criticism has plucked the imaginary flowers on the chain not in order that man shall continue to bear that chain without fantasy or consolation, but so that he shall throw off the chain and pluck the living flower." - Marx
Since the spectacular collapse of Sanders and Corbyn, the Western left has been thrown into a state of uncertainty. Should it continue to pursue a democratic socialist agenda, attempting to transform liberal capitalism from within? Or should it break with this, calling for revolt against a capitalist class unbowed by the movements of the past decade?
The book's authors address this question by returning to Marx-or rather, by asking which Marx we should return to. Is Marx an inveterate democrat, whose work privileges the dignity of man above all? Or is he-as Louis Althusser once argued-the founder of a new science, incompatible with the shibboleths of liberal-capitalist society?
Flowers for Marx features texts from five voices from across the materialist left, from Democratic Socialist, to Socialist, to Communist, humanist to scientistic. The result, as the authors exchange ideas and jibes across their texts, is an open debate about the tactical future of the left in a challenging era.
Whether new to the field or a seasoned veteran of Marxist debate, Flowers for Marx demonstrates the lengths theorists of the present and past have gone to as they grapple with issues of conscience and attempt to find a way forward for Marx's emancipatory vision. The outcome is informative, challenging and at points even funny. Flowers for Marx demonstrates there is still much to reckon with in the notion of a just and equal society.
