New Books In Critical Theory

Marxists have an obvious interest in understanding social movements. Less obvious, even with the voluminous theoretical archives at hand, is how to pull their various forms together into a cohesive theory of collective action. While one can see images on the news of strikes, riots, protests, coups, and uprisings, and draw occasional connections between them, turning this vast array of phenomena into a cohesive theory that can be built upon remains a challenge, but it's one my guests today, Augustin Santella and Adrian Piva have risen to. Assembling a number of essays from scholars from all over the world, their book, Marxism, Social Movements and Collective Action (Palgrave Macmillan, 2023) tries to understand the various forms collective struggle can take, all the while chasing the underlying logic that might unite them. While the book will not be the final word on the topic, its essays will prove rich resources for those looking for both empirical examples and philosophical speculations on the nature of col