Marx's theory of history is often regarded as the most enduring and fruitful aspect of his intellectual legacy. His "historical materialism" has been the inspiration for some of the best historical writing in the works of scholars such as Eric Hobsbawm, E.P.Thompson, Rodney Hilton and Robert Brenner. S.H. Rigby establishes Marx's claims about social structure and historical change, discusses their use in his own and his followers' writings, and assesses the validity of his theories. He argues that Marx's social theories (...) were profoundly contradictory and that Marxism has proved most useful when it is seen as a source of questions, concepts and hypotheses rather than as a philosophy of historical development. (shrink)

"Philosophical anthropology on the grandest scale....Gellner has produced a sharp challenge to his colleagues and a thrilling book for the non-specialist. Deductive history on this scale cannot be proved right or wrong, but this is Gellner writing, incisive, iconoclastic, witty and expert. His scenario compels our attention."—Adam Kuper, _New Statesman_ "A thoughtful and lively meditation upon probably the greatest transformation in human history, upon the difficult problems it poses and the scant resources it has left us to solve them."—Charles Larmore, (...) _New Republic_. (shrink)

The Marxist tradition consists of a distinctive combination of social and historical theory, socialist values and political practice, with secular materialist underpinnings. The theory of history inspired by G. A. Cohen's work retains its vitality as a research program, and the socialist value base is also in reasonable shape. Any recovery of the tradition needs however to confront the negative legacy of Marxism's historical past. The theory of history does influence socialist political practice, as has been assumed by most Marxists (...) but denied by Cohen. This influence is not necessarily conducive to classical socialist goals, however, and a considerable tension exists between the most defensible version of historical materialism and socialism's antimarket values. (shrink)