II. Introduction to revolutionary Marxism

Room 257, Richard Hoggart Building, Goldsmiths.
Sundays, 1-4pm.

• required / + recommended reading

Marx and Engels readings pp. from Robert C. Tucker, ed., Marx-Engels Reader (Norton 2nd ed., 1978)

Recommended winter break preliminary readings:

+ Leszek Kolakowski, “The concept of the Left” (1968)
+ Richard Appignanesi and Oscar Zarate / A&Z, Introducing Lenin and the Russian Revolution / Lenin for Beginners (1977)
+ Sebastian Haffner, Failure of a Revolution: Germany 1918–19 (1968)
+ Tariq Ali and Phil Evans, Introducing Trotsky and Marxism / Trotsky for Beginners (1980)
+ James Joll, The Second International 1889–1914 (1966)
+ Edmund Wilson, To the Finland Station: A Study in the Writing and Acting of History (1940), Part II. Ch. (1–4,) 5–10, 12–16; Part III. Ch. 1–6

Film screenings: January 2018

• 37 Days (2014) [Episode 1] [Episode 2] [Episode 3]
• Fall of Eagles (1974) episodes: "Absolute Beginners," "The Secret War," and "End Game"
• Rosa Luxemburg (1986)
• Oliver Stone's Untold History of the United States (2012) Episodes A (1900-20) and B (1920-40)
• Reds (1981)

Week 11. What is Marxism? VI. Class consciousness | Jan. 14, 2018

• Lukács, Original Preface (1922), “What is Orthodox Marxism?” (1919), “Class Consciousness” (1920), History and Class Consciousness (1923)
+ Marx, Preface to the First German Edition and Afterword to the Second German Edition (1873) of Capital (1867), pp. 294–298, 299–302

Week 12. What is Marxism? VII. Ends of philosophy | Jan. 21, 2018

• Korsch, “Marxism and philosophy” (1923)
+ Being and becoming (freedom in transformation) / immanent dialectical critique chart of terms
+ Marx, To make the world philosophical (from Marx's dissertation, 1839–41), pp. 9–11
+ Marx, For the ruthless criticism of everything existing (letter to Arnold Ruge, September 1843), pp. 12–15
+ Marx, "Theses on Feuerbach" (1845), pp. 143–145

Winter–Spring 2018

II. Introduction to revolutionary Marxism

Week 13. Revolutionary leadership | Jan. 28, 2018

• Rosa Luxemburg, “The Crisis of German Social Democracy” Part 1 (1915)
• J. P. Nettl, “The German Social Democratic Party 1890–1914 as a Political Model” (1965)
• Cliff Slaughter, “What is Revolutionary Leadership?” (1960)

Week 14. Reform or revolution? | Feb. 4, 2018

• Luxemburg, Reform or Revolution? (1900/08)
+ Eugene Debs, "Competition versus Cooperation" (1900)

Week 15. Lenin and the vanguard party | Feb. 11, 2018

• Spartacist League, Lenin and the Vanguard Party (1978)

Break for Platypus European Conference  | Feb. 18, 2018

Week 16. What is to be done? | Feb. 25, 2018

• V. I. Lenin, What is to be Done? (1902)
+ Richard Appignanesi and Oscar Zarate / A&Z, Introducing Lenin and the Russian Revolution / Lenin for Beginners (1977)

Week 17. Mass strike and social democracy | Mar. 4, 2018

• Luxemburg, The Mass Strike, the Political Party and the Trade Unions (1906)
+ Luxemburg, "Blanquism and Social Democracy" (1906)

Week 18. Permanent revolution | Mar. 11, 2018

• Leon Trotsky, Results and Prospects (1906)
+ Tariq Ali and Phil Evans, Introducing Trotsky and Marxism / Trotsky for Beginners (1980)

Week 19. State and revolution | Mar. 18, 2018

• Lenin, The State and Revolution (1917)

Week 20. Imperialism | Mar. 25, 2018

• Lenin, Imperialism, the Highest Stage of Capitalism (1916)
+ Lenin, Socialism and War Ch. 1 The principles of socialism and the War of 1914–15 (1915)

Week 22. Failure of the revolution | Apr 1, 2018

• Luxemburg, “What does the Spartacus League Want?” (1918)
• Luxemburg, “On the Spartacus Programme” (1918)
+ Luxemburg, "German Bolshevism" (AKA "The Socialisation of Society") (1918)
+ Luxemburg, “The Russian Tragedy” (1918)
+ Luxemburg, “Order Reigns in Berlin” (1919)
+ Eugene Debs, “The Day of the People” (1919)
+ Sebastian Haffner, Failure of a Revolution: Germany 1918–19 (1968)

Week 23. Apr. 8, 2018 [Platypus international convention]

Week 24. Retreat after revolution | Apr. 15, 2018

• Lenin, “Left-Wing” Communism: An Infantile Disorder (1920)
+ Lenin, "Notes of a Publicist" (1922)

Week 25. Dialectic of reification | Apr. 22, 2018

• Lukács, “The Standpoint of the Proletariat” (Part III of “Reification and the Consciousness of the Proletariat,” 1923). Available in three sections from marxists.org: section 1 section 2 section 3
+ Being and becoming (freedom in transformation) / immanent dialectical critique chart of terms

Week 26. Lessons of October | Apr. 29, 2018

• Trotsky, The Lessons of October (1924) [PDF] + Trotsky, "Stalinism and Bolshevism" (1937)

Week 27. Trotskyism | May 6, 2018

+ Trotsky, "To build communist parties and an international anew" (1933)
• Trotsky, The Death Agony of Capitalism and the Tasks of the Fourth International (1938)
+ Trotsky, "Trade unions in the epoch of imperialist decay" (1940)
+ Trotsky, Letter to James Cannon (September 12, 1939)

Week 28. The authoritarian state | May 13, 2018

• Friedrich Pollock, "State Capitalism: Its Possibilities and Limitations" (1941) (note 32 on USSR)
• Max Horkheimer, "The Authoritarian State" (1942)

Week 29. On the concept of history | May 20, 2018

• epigraphs by Louis Menand (on Edmund Wilson) and Peter Preuss (on Nietzsche) on the modern concept of history
+ Charles Baudelaire, from Fusées [Rockets] (1867)
+ Bertolt Brecht, "To posterity" (1939)
+ Walter Benjamin, "To the planetarium" (from One-Way Street, 1928)
+ Benjamin, "Experience and poverty" (1933)
+ Benjamin, Theologico-political fragment (1921/39?)
• Benjamin, "On the Concept of History" (AKA "Theses on the Philosophy of History") (1940) [PDF] • Benjamin, Paralipomena to "On the Concept of History" (1940)
+ Being and becoming (freedom in transformation) / immanent dialectical critique chart of terms

Week 30. Reflections on Marxism | May 27, 2018

• Theodor Adorno, “Reflections on Class Theory” (1942)
• Adorno, “Imaginative Excesses” (1944–47)
+ Being and becoming (freedom in transformation) / immanent dialectical critique chart of terms
+ Adorno, Dedication, "Bequest", "Warning: Not to be Misused" and "Finale", Minima Moralia (1944–47)
+ Horkheimer and Adorno, "Discussion about Theory and Praxis" (AKA "Towards a New Manifesto?") [Deutsch] (1956)

Week 31. Theory and practice | Jun. 3, 2018

+ Adorno, “On Subject and Object” (1969)
• Adorno, “Marginalia to Theory and Praxis” (1969)
• Adorno, “Resignation” (1969)
+ Being and becoming (freedom in transformation) / immanent dialectical critique chart of terms
+ Adorno, “Late Capitalism or Industrial Society?” (AKA “Is Marx Obsolete?”) (1968)
+ Esther Leslie, Introduction to the 1969 Adorno-Marcuse correspondence (1999)
+ Adorno and Herbert Marcuse, correspondence on the German New Left (1969)

Oxford: Thursdays 5.00 – 7.00 pm

Harris Manchester College, Carpenter Room (map of the college)
1 Mansfield Rd, Oxford OX1 3TD

• required / + recommended reading

Recommended winter break preliminary readings:

+ Leszek Kolakowski, “The concept of the Left” (1968)
+ Richard Appignanesi and Oscar Zarate / A&Z, “Introducing Lenin and the Russian Revolution / Lenin for Beginners” (1977)
+ Sebastian Haffner, “Failure of a Revolution: Germany 1918–19” (1968)
+ Tariq Ali and Phil Evans, “Introducing Trotsky and Marxism / Trotsky for Beginners” (1980)
+ James Joll, “The Second International 1889–1914” (1966)
+ Edmund Wilson, “To the Finland Station: A Study in the Writing and Acting of History” (1940), Part II. Ch. (1–4,) 5–10, 12–16; Part III. Ch. 1–6

Hilary Term 2018

I. Introduction to Platypus

Week 1. Capital in History | 18^th January 2018

• Max Horkheimer, “The little man and the philosophy of freedom” (1926–31)
• Chris Cutrone, “The Marxist hypothesis” (2010)
• Chris Cutrone, “Class consciousness (from a Marxist persective) today” (2012)
• Chris Cutrone, “Capital in history” (2008)
• epigraphs on modern history and freedom by Louis Menand (on Marx and Engels) and Karl Marx, on “becoming” (from the Grundrisse, 1857–58)
+ Capital in history timeline and chart of terms
+ Being and becoming (freedom in transformation) chart of terms
+ video of Communist University 2011 London presentation

Week 2. Utopia and Critique | 25^th January 2018

• Leszek Kolakowski, “The concept of the Left” (1968)
• Marx, “To make the world philosophical” (from Marx's dissertation, 1839–41), pp. 9–11
• Marx, “For the ruthless criticism of everything existing” (letter to Arnold Ruge, September 1843), pp. 12–15

II. Introduction to Revolutionary Marxism

Week 3. Revolutionary leadership | 1^st February 2018

• Rosa Luxemburg, “The Crisis of German Social Democracy” Part 1 (1915)
• J. P. Nettl, “The German Social Democratic Party 1890–1914 as a Political Model” (1965)
• Cliff Slaughter, “What is Revolutionary Leadership?” (1960)

Week 4. Reform or revolution? | 8^th February 2018

• Luxemburg, “Reform or Revolution?” (1900/08)
+ Eugene Debs, “Competition versus Cooperation” (1900)

Week 5. Lenin and the vanguard party | 15^th February 2018

• Spartacist League, “Lenin and the Vanguard Party” (1978)

Week 6. What is to be done? | 22^th February 2018

• V. I. Lenin, “What is to be Done?” (1902)
+ Richard Appignanesi and Oscar Zarate / A&Z, “Introducing Lenin and the Russian Revolution / Lenin for Beginners” (1977)

Week 7. Mass strike and social democracy | 1^st March 2018

• Luxemburg, “The Mass Strike, the Political Party and the Trade Unions” (1906)
+ Luxemburg, “Blanquism and Social Democracy” (1906)

Week 8. Permanent revolution | 8^th March 2018

• Leon Trotsky, “Results and Prospects” (1906)
+ Tariq Ali and Phil Evans, “Introducing Trotsky and Marxism / Trotsky for Beginners” (1980)

Trinity Term 2018

Week 9. State and revolution | 26^th April 2018

• Lenin, “The State and Revolution” (1917)

Week 10. Imperialism | 3^rd May 2018

• Lenin, “Imperialism, the Highest Stage of Capitalism” (1916)
+ Lenin, “Socialism and War”, Ch. 1 The principles of socialism and the War of 1914–15 (1915)

Week 11. Failure of the revolution | 10^th May 2018

• Luxemburg, “What does the Spartacus League Want?” (1918)
• Luxemburg, “On the Spartacus Programme” (1918)
+ Luxemburg, “German Bolshevism” (AKA “The Socialisation of Society”) (1918)
+ Luxemburg, “The Russian Tragedy” (1918)
+ Luxemburg, “Order Reigns in Berlin” (1919)
+ Eugene Debs, “The Day of the People” (1919)
+ Sebastian Haffner, “Failure of a Revolution: Germany 1918–19” (1968)

Week 12. Retreat after revolution | 17^th May 2018

• Lenin, ““Left-Wing” Communism: An Infantile Disorder” (1920)
+ Lenin, “Notes of a Publicist” (1922)

Week 13. Dialectic of reification | 24^th May 2018

• Lukács, “The Standpoint of the Proletariat” (Part III of “Reification and the Consciousness of the Proletariat,” 1923). Available in three sections from marxists.org: section 1 section 2 section 3
+ Being and becoming (freedom in transformation) / immanent dialectical critique chart of terms

Week 14. Lessons of October | 31^th May 2018

• Trotsky, “The Lessons of October” (1924) [PDF] + Trotsky, “Stalinism and Bolshevism” (1937)

Week 15. Trotskyism | 7^th June 2018

+ Trotsky, “To build communist parties and an international anew” (1933)
• Trotsky, “The Death Agony of Capitalism and the Tasks of the Fourth International” (1938)
+ Trotsky, “Trade unions in the epoch of imperialist decay” (1940)
+ Trotsky, “Letter to James Cannon” (September 12, 1939)

Week 16. The authoritarian state | 14^th June 2018

• Theodor Adorno, “Reflections on Class Theory” (1942)
• Max Horkheimer, “The Authoritarian State” (1942)
+ Friedrich Pollock, “State Capitalism: Its Possibilities and Limitations” (1941) (note 32 on USSR)

EVENTS IN CATALONIA in the last two months represent the biggest challenge ever faced by the Spanish regime since its establishment in 1978. The explosion of the masses on to the scene has acquired at points insurrectionary features. Where does this movement come from? What is its character and how can it move forward in the face of Spanish state repression?

The account of history is the theory of the present: How did we get here; and what tasks remain from the past — that however appear to be “new” today? As Adorno put it, “the new is the old in distress.” This is true of capitalism and its crisis now.