Bruno Leipold, Citizen Marx: Republicanism and the Formation of Karl Marx’s Social and Political Thought – Princeton University Press, November 2024
In Citizen Marx, Bruno Leipold argues that, contrary to certain interpretive commonplaces, Karl Marx’s thinking was deeply informed by republicanism. Marx’s relation to republicanism changed over the course of his life, but its complex influence on his thought cannot be reduced to wholesale adoption or rejection. Challenging common depictions of Marx that downplay or ignore his commitment to politics, democracy, and freedom, Leipold shows that Marx viewed democratic political institutions as crucial to overcoming the social unfreedom and domination of capitalism. One of Marx’s principal political values, Leipold argues, was a republican conception of freedom, according to which one is unfree when subjected to arbitrary power.
Placing Marx’s republican communism in its historical context—but not consigning him that context—Leipold traces Marx’s shifting relationship to republicanism across three broad periods. First, Marx began his political life as a republican committed to a democratic republic in which citizens held active popular sovereignty. Second, he transitioned to communism, criticizing republicanism but incorporating the republican opposition to arbitrary power into his social critiques. He argued that although a democratic republic was not sufficient for emancipation, it was necessary for it. Third, spurred by the events of the Paris Commune of 1871, he came to view popular control in representation and public administration as essential to the realization of communism. Leipold shows how Marx positioned his republican communism to displace both antipolitical socialism and anticommunist republicanism. One of Marx’s great contributions, Leipold argues, was to place politics (and especially democratic politics) at the heart of socialism.
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Dear Stuart, this message isn’t in regard to above post but the earlier one posted on the forthcoming publication by Princeton of Marx’s Capital. Princeton have just released their cover design, an interesting design, and thankfully the weighty tome is a hardcover priced affordably, which one assumes includes a dust jacket at that price point. One hopes. Though Princeton’s information states this edition is ‘Volume 1’ so can one infer that Princeton will be publishing Volumes 2 and 3 to complete the project? Do you have any further knowledge if this is this case? If so it’s an exciting proposition. All the best, Martin Bongiorno
Thanks Martin. I’ve updated the post with the cover image. I don’t have any information on whether it will be followed by the other volumes – an interesting thought. I suspect Volume 1 in the title is necessary given it’s widely known that there is more than one volume, but also that this is by far the most marketable volume.
Hmm. My reference is the old Penguin/Pelican editions from the 1970’s which were published in 3 separate volumes as chunky paperbacks. You no doubt have copies. It’s interesting that there’s no mention or information on Princeton’s ‘Capital’ page of Vols 2 and 3 following in subsequent years. I suspect Princeton’s editors are waiting to see how the market receives the book. For a 800+ page hardcover priced at 40 USD i can see how they might think this way. I’ve emailed PUP to clarify but no response thus far. We’ll just have to wait.