Marx and Engels made the fundamental mistake of conflating violence with authority. They were correct to say that revolution must be violent, and from their mistake assumed it must also establish authority. In the last 150 years, we have seen many examples of anarchic violence across the world. Marx’s assumption is no longer relevant except as an item of historical interest. It is not core to those parts of Marxian theory which are worth bringing into the analyses of the 21st century.
i recommended giving Engles’s ON AUTHORITY a quick read. if you believe they are mistaken that’s fine, but i think you would be interested since he talks about this exact subject in that text.
the very act of violence–resisting an authority or otherwise–is an act of authority.
Marx and Engels made the fundamental mistake of conflating violence with authority. They were correct to say that revolution must be violent, and from their mistake assumed it must also establish authority. In the last 150 years, we have seen many examples of anarchic violence across the world. Marx’s assumption is no longer relevant except as an item of historical interest. It is not core to those parts of Marxian theory which are worth bringing into the analyses of the 21st century.
i recommended giving Engles’s ON AUTHORITY a quick read. if you believe they are mistaken that’s fine, but i think you would be interested since he talks about this exact subject in that text.
the very act of violence–resisting an authority or otherwise–is an act of authority.