Marx in the Anthropocene: Towards the Idea of Degrowth Communism
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- Create Date：2023-03-08 07:52:21
- Update Date：2025-09-07
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- Author：Kohei Saito
- ISBN：1009366181
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Summary
Facing global climate crisis， Karl Marx's ecological critique of capitalism more clearly demonstrates its importance than ever。 This book explains why Marx's ecology had to be marginalized and even suppressed by Marxists after his death throughout the twentieth century。 Marx's ecological critique of capitalism， however， revives in the Anthropocene against dominant productivism and monism。 Investigating new materials published in the complete works of Marx and Engels （Marx-Engels-Gesamtausgabe）， Saito offers a wholly novel idea of Marx's alternative to capitalism that should be adequately characterized as degrowth communism。 This provocative interpretation of the late Marx sheds new lights on the recent debates on the relationship between society and nature and invites readers to envision a post-capitalist society without repeating the failure of the actually existing socialism of the twentieth century。
Reviews
Anthony
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Informative and useful， but very inelegant。 If you put some of the juicy stuff （the necessity of degrowth communism， real vs natural scarcity， etc） upfront that would go a long way。 The information in this book needs wider circulation from more skilled popular writers now that the theorists like Saito have put it down on paper。 The popularity of this book in Japan surprised observers and it surprises me。 It shows how hungry we all are for an end to small time thinking， government incompetence an Informative and useful， but very inelegant。 If you put some of the juicy stuff （the necessity of degrowth communism， real vs natural scarcity， etc） upfront that would go a long way。 The information in this book needs wider circulation from more skilled popular writers now that the theorists like Saito have put it down on paper。 The popularity of this book in Japan surprised observers and it surprises me。 It shows how hungry we all are for an end to small time thinking， government incompetence and the paucity of vision from our elected officials。 Using Marx's own neglected writings as a bridge between green and red is a brilliant idea and hopefully more comes of it in the years to come。 。。。more
Kai
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it's kind of funny that this book seems to have captured the zeitgeist in a substantial way， given that major portions of the text itself are given to extreme close readings and comparisons of passages within marx， and particularly within the most esoteric passages and texts: various letters， unpublished notebooks， drafts and revisions， and notes on the texts of others （what is sometimes derogatorily termed 'marxicology'）。 such a reading is not without its academic pleasures。 two chapters in par it's kind of funny that this book seems to have captured the zeitgeist in a substantial way， given that major portions of the text itself are given to extreme close readings and comparisons of passages within marx， and particularly within the most esoteric passages and texts: various letters， unpublished notebooks， drafts and revisions， and notes on the texts of others （what is sometimes derogatorily termed 'marxicology'）。 such a reading is not without its academic pleasures。 two chapters in particular stand out in this regard: the opening reading of the multiplicity and second order metabolism in chapter one （building on Meszaros， surprisingly and compellingly）， and the comparison of marx's study of science and pre-capitalist land tenure in chapter six （including but going beyond Kevin Anderson's well-known work）。 here Saito's work mostly shines。 i will frequently be returning to chapter six's main point that marx's study of non-capitalist agricultural communes was motivated by an interest in revising *both* his prior eurocentric teleology or developmentalism *and* his prior productivist tendencies in order to understand communism as a kind of return to a revised 'archaic' type。these useful chapters are interspersed in some alternatingly dry and somewhat bad readings。 two early chapters distinguish between marx and engels' different positions in late life， and lukacs' humanist shadow on western marxism。 not altogether interesting， but also not immediately political--it's difficult for me to think of something less immediately useful than mining unpublished lukacs books！ the next chapter is a critique of ontological and methodological monism， particularly in neil smith， noel castree， and jason w moore。 it tries to make them all out to be latourians， flat ontologists， etc。 this chapter is largely a disaster。 the argument overstates the importance of ontology in politics， fails to disaggregate the varieties of environmentalism or ecology， overstates the difference between "production"， "construction"， and "metabolism。" it truly feels like an academic dustup--which saito almost admits to be a contest of "popularity" （114）！ The critique of full automation （bastani， mason， etc） in the following chapter is not as hard hitting as it could be， but the reading of the chapter of Capital on co-operation as a revision of the "fragment on machines" in the Grundrisse felt really innovative。 overall， much as i enjoyed this book， i remain somewhat confused and suspicious of the work that this kind of return to capital-m Marx does。 it is argued that attending to such unpublished fragments can challenge the assumptions and assessments of marx as a "promethean" "productivist" and "eurocentric" thinker， and the politics that are derived from， or in opposition， to these versions of his thought。 the reading， however， is sometimes presented as if the "late marx" finally completed his ecological assessment of the world， an assessment that is superior to his prior works （even here presented as a kind of ecological version of Althusser's epistemological break）。 such a position seems at odds from the referenced project of neue marx lekture which instead suggests that marx's project is not just "unfinished" but "unfinishable"--it is contradictory， and in fact insufficient on its own to the present。 more affirmatively， our readings of marx change as history changes， our production of communism must change with our understanding of each other and the planet， and thus we should never be afraid of critiquing the limitations or contradictions of Marx's various positions。 to me， we don't need to exaggerate Marx's two mentions of 'rift' into an entire version of 'his theory of ecosocialism'， or his scattered assessments of russian and german agricultural communes into a full-fledged support of 'sustainability' or 'steady-state' economics--'degrowth communism' can be *our* theory and no less powerful。 。。。more
Benjamin Solidarity
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A fantastic and timely read。 Saito weaves together a number of critical theoretical threads on ecosocialism， degrowth， and Marxism， into what could be argued is a major new theoretical synthesis and contribution for the field。 A dense theoretical read overall， it is worth the serious engagement。Saito make a strong case that Marx was progressing towards a viewpoint that was both far less productivistic and less eurocentric near the end of his life。 Whether or not the late Marx's ideas could reall A fantastic and timely read。 Saito weaves together a number of critical theoretical threads on ecosocialism， degrowth， and Marxism， into what could be argued is a major new theoretical synthesis and contribution for the field。 A dense theoretical read overall， it is worth the serious engagement。Saito make a strong case that Marx was progressing towards a viewpoint that was both far less productivistic and less eurocentric near the end of his life。 Whether or not the late Marx's ideas could really be described as "degrowth Marxism" I think is debatable， there is still enough evidence here to point towards ideas that can be built on in that direction。 Saito is very forthright in the point that Marxism is fundamentally incomplete， and it's up to us to build on it theoretically。 。。。more
Edgar Moreno Martínez
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Combina unos primeros capítulos francamente flojos donde describe que estamos muy mal， pero de forma tan informal que desconvence más que convence （aunque si que aporta alguna cosa interesante en contradicciones， externalizaciones， como más eficiencia no implica menores emisiones。。。） con unos últimos capítulos más prepositivos que se pueden resumir en "viva el valor de uso y no el valor de cambio"， gobernémonos en vez de que nos gobiernen los mercados para que nuestros hijos todavía puedan vivir Combina unos primeros capítulos francamente flojos donde describe que estamos muy mal， pero de forma tan informal que desconvence más que convence （aunque si que aporta alguna cosa interesante en contradicciones， externalizaciones， como más eficiencia no implica menores emisiones。。。） con unos últimos capítulos más prepositivos que se pueden resumir en "viva el valor de uso y no el valor de cambio"， gobernémonos en vez de que nos gobiernen los mercados para que nuestros hijos todavía puedan vivir， realmente te sale a cuenta trabajar 40 horas para comprarte camisetas en el bershka o sería mejor trabajar 20 y pasarte las otras 20 haciendo el pino。。。 que la verdad son bastante excitantes。 。。。more
Noritaka Hara
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There are some interesting ideas in the book， but too many logic jumps/flaws， and unexplained nor tested superficial concepts - so not up to any hype （in my opinion）。 Basic his idea is that capitalism is the source of climate change， and most of the current measures against it （like a green new deal， SGDs， etc） are built on capitalism and thus will not solve the issue （nothing new）。 Capitalism externalizes cost and creates scarcity to make more money， thus creating inequality （like what Piketty There are some interesting ideas in the book， but too many logic jumps/flaws， and unexplained nor tested superficial concepts - so not up to any hype （in my opinion）。 Basic his idea is that capitalism is the source of climate change， and most of the current measures against it （like a green new deal， SGDs， etc） are built on capitalism and thus will not solve the issue （nothing new）。 Capitalism externalizes cost and creates scarcity to make more money， thus creating inequality （like what Piketty said）。 Since current election-based democracy is controlled by capital， democracy has to change。 To solve this， he cited de-growth communism， which is an idea of Marx late in life。 It basically aims at equality with distributed power based on abundance through commons。 Commons is like a coop or association which is owned and run by producers （like Spain has） and produces "essential products"， and bullshit jobs which create unnecessary products to make money will disappear。Many of his arguments are very weak and not thorough， and lack concreteness （he cites many foreign researchers and cases， which is sadly typical tactics to convince the Japanese audience）。 He thinks capitalism is the sole fuel/force that drives people to seek endless consumption。 But I think it could be the opposite - capitalism is just a engine run also by some essential human desire， being currently expressed as endless consumption。 Thus， without taking into account that， just replacing current system based on capitalism （aside from its feasibility） with his hypothetical de-growth communism does not seem plausible path especially for addressing climate change。 。。。more
Miyu
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長い積読期間を経てやっと読み終わった記念。「価値と使用価値の乖離」「過度な分業化による個人の無力化」確かに今のシステムには不思議に恐ろしい点が多い
Baasan
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 最高に興味深い。資本主義とは何か、このまま対策を打たずに進めば、人類をどのような未来が待ち構えているかを説明。資本主義の最後の砦となったSDGsをアヘンに例えて揶揄する。マルクスの思考経過も丁寧に記載していることが他書と比べて特徴的。①気候ケインズ主義を掲げるか、②気候毛沢東でいくのか、或いは対策を打たずに③野蛮状態に陥るのかなどを対策を考えさせられる。著者は必需品（食料、エネルギー、水、医療、教育）のコモンにより運営、管理を提案している。是非皆さんに本書を一読し、我々が営む社会を第三者の目線で診ていただきたい。
tpg0
，
As an AI language model， I am not capable of making literary recommendations based on personal opinions or experiences。 However， I can provide a brief overview of the book 'Marx in the Anthropocene: Towards the Idea of Degrowth Communism'。 The book is a collection of essays edited by various authors who examine the environmental implications of Marx's economic and political theory， with a particular focus on the potential for a degrowth communist society。 It also explores various contemporary issues related to climate change， political ecology， and Marxist thought。 The authors argue that a Marxist theory of degrowth can provide a framework for tackling issues related to climate change， resource depletion， and inequality。 The book thus attempts to bridge the gap between ecological concerns and Marxist theory， proposing an alternative economic model that is both sustainable and just。 Overall， 'Marx in the Anthropocene: Towards the Idea of Degrowth Communism' is an interesting read for those interested in Marxist theory， environmentalism and alternative economic models。
tpg1
，
As an AI language model， I cannot provide a personal opinion or review of a book， but I can give you an overview of what the book 'Marx in the Anthropocene: Towards the Idea of Degrowth Communism' is about。 The book explores the intersection between Marxist theory and the ecological crisis of the Anthropocene era。 It argues that the traditional Marxist approach to industrialization and growth is no longer feasible， given the limits of the planet's resources and the devastating impact of human activity on the natural environment。 The authors propose an alternative vision of communism that embraces the principles of degrowth， a political and economic movement that advocates for a reduction in production and consumption levels to achieve sustainability and social equity。 Drawing on the writings of Marx， as well as critical ecological theorists and activists， the book offers a critical analysis of capitalism's impact on the environment and argues for a radical reimagining of our relationship with nature and with each other。 Overall， 'Marx in the Anthropocene: Towards the Idea of Degrowth Communism' is a thought-provoking and challenging exploration of the intersections between Marxism， ecological politics， and the urgent need for transformative change in the face of the Anthropocene crisis。
tpg2
，
As an AI language model， I don't have personal opinions or beliefs， but I can provide a brief summary of the book 'Marx in the Anthropocene: Towards the Idea of Degrowth Communism' by Stefano Longo， Brett Clark， and Richard York。 The book examines the current ecological crisis and how Marx's ideas can provide a framework for understanding the relationship between capitalism， environmental degradation， and humans' impact on the planet。 The authors argue that Marx's work needs to be reinterpreted in light of the Anthropocene， a new geological era where human activities have become the primary force shaping the environment。 They also propose the idea of Degrowth Communism， which advocates for a planned reduction in economic activity and consumption in order to address climate change and ecological destruction。 The book argues that this more sustainable economic model can be achieved through democratic decision-making and collective ownership of resources。 Overall， 'Marx in the Anthropocene: Towards the Idea of Degrowth Communism' offers a critical analysis of the impact of capitalism on the environment and an alternative vision for a more just and sustainable society。
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marx in the anthropocene towards the idea of degrowth communism