Louis AlthusserOn The Reproduction Of Capitalism: Ideology And Ideological State Apparatuses

This is the book to read by any Marxist if you want to get a good grasp of Marx’s main ideas and their importance in practice. It’s like a handbook you can read and re-read. I’ve read this book dozens of times because it’s the only one that clearly lays out the main concepts of social formation, mode of production, forces and relations of production, social division of labor, the role of the state and ideology. This was written post-68 and I believe it was Althusser’s intention to write a handbook of Marx that students could use to clearly understand the important ideas behind the political turmoil of the day. Unfortunately the post-structuralists won the day and the following decades as our philosophical and political culture turned to the right against socialism and towards a Nietzschean and Heideggerian neo-fascism.

This book has its moments, but it doesn’t shine compared to more polished texts by Althusser. Take his classic, For Marx; like it or not, and despite the Leninist dogma, For Marx is a theoretically rich text which is more or less well argued. On the other hand, On the Reproduction of Capitalism is didactic, and the discussions feel cursory and at times unorganized; what’s more, the Leninist dogma is laid on extra thick. Now, this isn’t the worst thing in the world, especially if you’re sympathetic to Leninism; the text could serve as a quick introduction or primer of sorts, and Althusser’s theoretical developments on the topic of ideology, the distinction between economic and political class struggle, etc., should not be overlooked. There are some very interesting and noteworthy points in the text. But honestly: this text was an unpublished manuscript, and it feels like one. There are more disgruntled and polemical rants than carefully articulated theoretical interventions in this book. On the flip side, the former may be more fun to read than the latter.If you’re interested in Althusser, consider supplementing this with For Marx or Reading Capital.

Along with Sartre, Simone de Beauvoir, Deleuze, Derrida and Lacan Louis Althusser was a key figure in post-WW II French philosophy. One of his projects was to shift the focus of Marxist thought away from outmoded aspects of Marx's economic theory (including to some extent the theory of surplus value) and toward a new theory based on in part on his concept of the Ideological State Apparatus. One aspect of this process was to frame an anti-humanist redefinition of Marxism.To all of these ideas this book is central.Highest recommendation.

A really amazing book. Although a bit sloppy writing, the structure of ideas and the originality of the ideas within are exceptional.

Exactly what you expect

Important read for anyone interested in Modern Marxist interpretation of ideological struggle. Also explains the influence Althusser has had on Zizek and his diatribe (dialectical) against ideology in a so called ,"post-ideological" world!

Required reading

5 stars