Economic Update with Richard D. Wolff

Episode: "Understanding Marxism"

Date: May 31, 2019

Episode Overview

In this special episode, Richard D. Wolff celebrates the release of his new book, "Understanding Marxism," and dedicates the program to explaining the significance, history, and impact of the Marxist tradition worldwide. The discussion aims to address renewed interest in socialism and Marxism, clarify what Marxism represents, highlight its global influence, and encourage listeners to critically assess capitalist societies through the lens of Marxist thought.

Main Discussion Points and Insights

1. Why "Understanding Marxism" Now? (00:10)

• Renewal of Interest: Wolff opens by noting a surge in curiosity about socialism and Marxism among both students and working people in recent years.
• Purpose of the Book: Designed as a short, accessible introduction, the book seeks to introduce diverse audiences to Marxism—presenting it as a tradition of both theory and practice.
• Enduring Relevance of Marxism: Despite Marx's death in 1883, his ideas have permeated global culture, politics, and academia in countless interpretations. Wolff emphasizes Marxism as "capitalism’s most profound criticism…the shadow of capitalism.” (02:37)

2. Marxism in the Broader Socialist Tradition (03:38)

• Socialism vs. Marxism: Socialism broadly aims to improve conditions under capitalism (higher wages, better benefits), while Marxism argues for a root-and-branch transformation—a new system altogether.
• Metaphor with Slavery: Wolff draws a historical parallel between critics of slavery (who either sought better treatment for slaves or outright abolition) and critics of capitalism (improvers versus abolitionists).
  • Quote: “[Marxism] thinks improvement isn’t quite what’s needed. We need a better and a different system. And Marxists have been in the forefront of saying that.” (04:31)

3. Core Criticisms of Capitalism According to Marxism (12:10)

Wolff summarizes Marxism’s three main indictments of capitalism:

• Inequality:

  • Capitalism systematically generates “great wealth at one pole and great poverty at another.” (13:00)
  • Quote: “It is as efficient in producing [poverty] as it is in producing wealth.” (13:09)

• Instability (Crises of Capitalism):

  • Capitalism is inherently unstable, marked by regular recessions and depressions (e.g., the Great Depression, Great Recession).
  • Quote: “An economic system that unstable is…something we can do better than, that is a system that we should replace.” (15:10)

• Injustice:

  • Instability and inequality together create a fundamentally unfair system, with the working class bearing the brunt of hardship.
  • Quote: “They’re the last hired, they’re the first fired, they’re the ones with the low income…so that the argument of the Marxists is we can do better.” (17:14)

4. The Global and Cultural Impact of Marxism (22:49)

Wolff surveys how Marxist thought has shaped intellectual, cultural, and political movements across continents. This section is a rich tapestry of names and schools of thought influenced by Marxism:

Continental Highlights

• Austria/Germany:

  • Rudolf Hilferding (finance capitalism), Austro-Marxism, Freud, and the Vienna intellectual scene.
  • Rosa Luxemburg: Brought Marxism to analyses on women and economic crises; honored in Berlin to this day.
  • Bertolt Brecht: Theater innovator.
  • The Frankfurt School: Walter Benjamin, Herbert Marcuse, Theodor Adorno.

• Russia:

  • Lenin and Trotsky: Pioneers of Marxist revolution.
  • Maxim Gorky (literature), Sergei Eisenstein (film).

• Italy:

  • Antonio Gramsci: Prison Notebooks and critique of culture.

• France:

  • Surrealist artists (André Breton, René Magritte), Jean-Paul Sartre, Louis Althusser, Derrida, Lévi-Strauss.

• Britain:

  • Joan Robinson and Maurice Dobb (Marxist economics).

• United States:

  • Paul Sweezy (economic theory), Elizabeth Gurley Flynn (labor organizer), Frederick Jameson (literature), Richard Lewontin (biology), W.E.B. Du Bois and Cornel West (race and class), Chris Hedges (journalism).

• Asia:

  • Mao Zedong (China), Dutt family (India), Nazim Hikmet (Turkey), Ho Chi Minh (Vietnam).

• Africa:

  • Frantz Fanon (anti-colonialism, psychology), ANC (South Africa), Kwame Nkrumah (Ghana), Amílcar Cabral (Guinea-Bissau).

• Latin America:

  • Walter Rodney, Eric Williams (slavery and colonialism), Eugene Genovese (U.S. slavery studies), Fidel Castro, Che Guevara, Zapatistas (politics), Pablo Neruda (poetry), Mexican muralists (Rivera, Orozco, Siqueiros, Frida Kahlo—art).

Notable Quote

• “Marxism has been there for 150 years. It's not going away. It has its ups and downs. But like Mark Twain said when he read an obituary of him in the newspaper, 'Predictions of my death have been quite exaggerated.' And so it has been with Marxism.” (42:35)

Memorable Quotes with Timestamps

• On Marxism as persistent critique:
  • “It’s capitalism’s most profound criticism, and so it lasts and revitalizes itself much as capitalism does. It’s kind of the shadow.” (02:37)
• On system change:
  • “Marxism is the notion that we need system change, that capitalism is a system that has fundamental flaws...that those flaws show up in the difficult conditions imposed on the majority of people.” (11:19)
• On inequality:
  • “Capitalism is indeed a system that produces and reproduces great wealth. But it unfortunately is a system that produces great wealth at one pole and great poverty at another.” (13:00)
• On instability:
  • “An economic system that unstable is an economic system that literally screams out, at least to Marxists, as being something that we can do better than…” (15:10)
• On the living tradition:
  • “It has shaped our history far more than those who don’t know it are willing to acknowledge…That’s why we wrote this book.” (44:27)

Timestamps: Important Segments

• 00:10 – 04:31: Introduction: Why write "Understanding Marxism" and what is Marxism?
• 04:32 – 11:17: Slavery analogy: Critics, reformers, and abolitionists—link to capitalist critique.
• 12:10 – 17:56: The three main criticisms Marxism makes of capitalism: Inequality, instability, and injustice.
• 22:49 – 41:40: Survey of Marxism's global influence: Key individuals and movements in Europe, America, Asia, Africa, Latin America.
• 41:41 – End: Conclusion: The enduring significance of Marxism; encouragement to read the new book.

Summary and Call to Action

Richard D. Wolff concludes this episode by underscoring the vitality and ongoing influence of Marxism. He encourages listeners not only to become familiar with the tradition but to actively engage with its analyses—especially as dissatisfaction with capitalism grows. The episode invites audiences to seek out "Understanding Marxism" for a concise, accessible overview, and to challenge themselves to think critically about the world and its possibilities for real change.