Ware, R. Marx on Emancipation and Socialist Goals

Marxology, as a discipline of the thorough interpretation of Marx’s work, can leave one feeling less confident of their grasp of Marxism than before. More often than not, seasoned academics will dominate the field to take up singular phrases in their multiple meanings, leaving other participants to scavenge an interpretation from the morass. That said, everyone involved with leftist theory and practice depends on this scholarship, as erroneous judgments and attributions can take root in its absence. However, it is difficult to avoid a lapse into a metaphysical search for the ‘essence’ of Marx, and more difficult still to communicate findings in intelligible ways to a non-specialist readership. Marx on Emancipation and Socialist Goals provides a strong example of how these pitfalls can be avoided. Ware relies on primary literature without a pretension to uncover the singular truth of Marx’s word. It is a work commendable for the frankness about its biases, because the author’s interpretation is severely weakened by a blanket rejection of dialectics as a viable aspect of Marx’s thought.