Selected Writings on Marxism

Stuart Hall (1932–2014) was one of the most prominent and influential scholars and public intellectuals of his generation. Hall taught at the University of Birmingham and the Open University, was the founding editor of New Left Review, and was the author of Cultural Studies 1983: A Theoretical History, Familiar Stranger: A Life Between Two Islands, and other books also published by Duke University Press.Gregor McLennan is Professor of Sociology at the University of Bristol and author of several books on Marxism, pluralism, and social theory.

“Brilliantly revising Marxism to incorporate the cultural turn, Stuart Hall not only created critical cultural studies, but he helped construct the intellectual world within which a cultural sociology could emerge.” - Jeffrey C. Alexander, author of (What Makes a Social Crisis? The Societalization of Social Problems) “A much-needed collection staging the brilliant Jamaican British sociologist Stuart Hall’s engagement with Marx in and out of the establishment of the iconic Centre for Contemporary Cultural Studies at Birmingham and his teaching at the Open University. The pieces coauthored with students and the active discussions of the selected pieces by a former student who also taught at the Open University make this volume a living theatre production of a powerful moment in British theoretical practice.” - Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak, author of (Chintar Durdasha/Jukti o Kalpanashokti) "I have also narrated the effort it took for me to access his work to illustrate the importance of the Selected Writings now being released by Duke University Press. It is an event of profound historical significance that a new generation will be able to begin its political and theoretical education with systematic access to Hall’s writing. . . . Selected Writings on Marxism, edited by Gregor McLennan, which should make apparent Hall’s importance as a major figure in the history of Marxist theory." - Asad Haider (The Point) "McLennan's editorial introduction and discussions in each part of the volume provide invaluable context for Hall's essays, enabling the reader to appreciate the distinctiveness of each contribution as well as the development of Hall's thought. This book will be invaluable to scholars and graduate students in the fields of sociology, history, critical theory, and cultural studies, and it will be essential for any readers concerned with the Marxian intellectual tradition. Essential. Graduate students and faculty." - T. Wheatland (Choice) “As Marxism regains its intellectual appeal for a new generation emerging amid the multiple crises and catastrophes of late capitalism, this meticulously edited volume is a timely and welcome addition to the excellent and developing Stuart Hall: Selected Writings series.” - Christian Hogsbjerg (H-Socialisms, H-Net Reviews) "It is clear that the Selected Writings on Marxism and Selected Writings on Race and Difference are two collected editions that have wide appeal to those working across the humanities, arts, and social sciences. Taken together, they appeal to readers who are not familiar with Hall’s intellectual work, showing the development of his work over several decades. For those familiar with Hall, they help us to deepen our knowledge of the intellectual currents Hall engaged with, and the debates and political interventions he sought to make." - Ali Meghji (Cultural Studies) "This is an excellent selection of Stuart Hall’s approach to Marxism that Gregor McLennan has expertly put together and commentated on ... an essential collection for scholars and students alike seeking a true overview of how Hall uniquely understood the social world."- Owen Worth (International Review of Social History)

• A Note on the Text  viiAcknowledgments  ixEditor's Introduction: Mediating Marxism  1Part I. Theoretical Readings1. Marx's Notes on Method: A "Reading" of the "1857 Introduction" [1974]  192. Rethinking the "Base and Superstructure" Metaphor [1977]  623. The "Political" and the "Economic" in Marx's Theory of Classes [1977]  914. The Problem of Ideology: Marxism without Guarantees [1983]  134Editor's Discussion of the Part I Writings  158Part II. Thematic Overviews5. Subcultures, Cultures and Class: A Theoretical Overview (with John Clarke, Tony Jefferson, and Brian Roberts) [1975]  1796. Black Crime, Black Proletariat (with Chas Critcher, Tony Jefferson, John Clarke, and Brian Roberts) [1978]  1997. Variants of Liberalism [1986]  227Editor's Discussion of the Part II Writings  247Part III. Points of Departure8. Nicos Poulantzas: State, Power, Socialism [1980]  2619. In Defence of Theory [1981]  27310. Authoritarian Populism: A Reply to Jessop et al. [1985]  28211. When Was "the Post-colonial"? Thinking at the Limit [1996]  29312. The Centrality of Culture: Notes on the Cultural Revolutions of Our Time [1997]  316Editor's Discussion of the Part III Writings  335Index  351Place of First Publication  363