[PEN-L:2363] Re: All the world's a stage

[blairs@xxxxxxxxxxx (Blair Sandler)]

At 7:23 AM 1/15/96, Terrence  Mc Donough wrote:

>In this sense a single world view unites both
>postmodernism and analytical Marxism and distinguishes both from the
> social world view of the dare I say it authentic Marxist
>tradition.


Well, on Terry's authoritative say so entire schools have now been written
out of Marxism. One tradition (economistic and economic determinist) is
"authentic" and all others not. I'm so glad we've all moved beyond
sectarianism....

Terry notes the "endless play of differences" recognized by postmodern
discourse,the impossibility of any ultimate groundedness outside of
discourse. The Amherst School merely recognizes that impossibility, and
does not try to proclaim that somehow it has squared the circle, or found a
perpetual motion machine. Terry, on the other hand, wants to insist that
class is "determinative." In the same way, many people insist on believing
in "God."

Terry's insistence on declaring that "class" is determinative is no
different from my "choosing" to stop with class, except it requires greater
discursive hubris. And here too the arrogance to proclaim unique
"authenticity." I refuse to characterize Marx's economics as either
"inauthentic" or "economistic," which is the dilemma posed by Terry's
characterization of "authentic" Marxism. For all the serious faults of
Laclau and Mouffe's HEGEMONY AND SOCIALIST STRATEGY (roundly criticized by
Diskin and Sandler, RM 6.3), they showed clearly the impossibility of
constructing a coherent theory of economic dynamics that conceives economic
processes pre-constituted solely within the "sphere" of economics, in
isolation from non-economic processes, and the former only then,
post-constitution, entering into play with the latter.

I think Terry's Marxist tradition is every bit as authentic as that of the
Amherst School; but politically and theoretically I believe the former to
be a dead end, whereas I see the overdeterminist approach permitting a
resuscitation of class politics and class struggle among all sorts of
social movements and on a mass scale. As this is my concern and interest in
Marxism, my allegiance is clear.

Respectfully,

Blair Sandler