Early Vs Late Marx – Was There a Break in Philosophy?
Early Vs Late Marx – Was There a Break in Philosophy?
Some scholars believe that there is an ideological break in Karl Marx’s writings where he changes from a Hegelian philosopher to a structuralist who was focused on economics. I feel that this question is difficult to answer without a date or textual specified break in writings. There is definitely a change in the focus and tone of Marx’s writings, but a clear line of theoretical change where a previous belief is discarded does not seem apparent. Instead, I see a large shift of focus that still retains Hegelian principles, followed by a gradual move away from those principles.
Looking at a change in Marxist thought could be interpreted as very Hegelian in itself. In order for a shift in Marxist thought to exist, one must recognize the young Marx versus the mature Max and see that young and mature are part of each other and led to a new synthesis. This is an example of Hegelian dialectic and it’s somewhat ironic to read interpretations of Marx that are structuralist in focus yet use dialectic principles.
First, I find the move between philosophy to practice a simple one. After theorizing about the nature of things one looks for