An Innovative Approach to Marx

Marx did not confine himself to criticising capitalism. He predicted the rise of a new mode of production which would take the place of capitalism and which he indifferently termed socialism or communism. In the light of this, the author thinks that even today those who do not envisage the possible emergence of a new mode of production cannot appropriately describe themselves as Marxists. Trying to figure out a type of revolution possible today, he suggests the turn to a system of worker-controlled firms, i.e. the form of market socialism that economic theorists have fleshed out most clearly, though he adds that this raises the need - or, rather, offers the welcome opportunity - to rethink Marx's theoretical approach. Aron has argued that only liberals and pessimists (arguably the true sages) caution us against setting ourselves tasks which we will not be able to master, while Marxists tend to undertake tasks on the spur of their daydreams, without the least regard to their real capabilities. In point of fact, since the goal that democratic firm management theorists are setting themselves is far from unrealistic, this dictum of Aron's is contradicted by any Marxists who set out to create the assumptions for empowering workers to manage their firms for themselves.