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The objective of this thesis is to provide a theoretical analysis and conceptual history of the most significant instances of convergence between 'anarchist' and 'Marxist' political ideas and practices, circa 1872-1963. This study will be conducted with two key aims. First, reassessing some of the dominant claims of a dichotomous relationship between the anarchist and Marxist traditions. Second, with a view towards determining if moments of convergence exhibit sufficient continuity and coherence to be considered as a distinct ideological current or sub-variant within the broader socialist tradition, or what has sometimes been referred to as 'libertarian socialism' or 'libertarian communism'. I argue that the communist, anti-statist, and anti-parliamentary currents in the international working-class movement expose a neglected sphere of commonality which demands closer investigation. In part one, 'Convergences and Divergences', I problematise the dominant interpretations of the relationships between anarchism and Marxism as hostile and irreconcilable ideologies. Employing the 'morphological' approach to ideologies, I then recast this debate as an interplay between two core political concepts: the 'libertarian' critique of hierarchy and authoritarianism and the 'communist' critique of the capitalist mode of production and alienated labour. Part two, 'Beyond the Red and Black Divide', examines the intersections of the libertarian and communist critiques through three case studies. In the first case study, the 'Chicago Idea' movement of the Haymarket Martyrs is examined as an instance of anarchist/Marxist synthesis - one of the ideological precursors of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) union. Case study two examines ideological innovations which emerged in response to the Russian Revolution (1917-1921) and Spanish Civil War (1936-1939) through an analysis of the Makhnovist-platformist, council communist, and the 'Friends of Durruti' group conceptions of revolutionary organisation. The final case study examines the post-war evolution of the Socialisme ou Barbarie, Johnson-Forest Tendency, and Solidarity groups from Trotskyism to 'libertarian socialism'.

This investigation combines contemporary Marxian political economy with Lacanian psychoanalysis to understand the discourse of finance capitalism, and to understand the dialectical seeds of the industry’s eventual destruction that were inherent within the hegemonic commodities of the era. These commodities, which include derivatives, futures, collateralized debt obligations, credit default swaps and subprime mortgage loans, were ideological and communicative as well as profitable, and thus do a double duty under finance capitalism’s dominance. Lacan’s concepts of metaphor, fantasy, the quilting point, and the master signifier are extended in order to understand how subjects come to know themselves and their world through the terms given to them by capital. In addition, the rhetorical interventions of two chief ideologists for finance capitalism in the 1990s, Thomas Friedman and Alan Greenspan, are interrogated as exemplifications of the fantastical nature of late capitalism. / text

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George Orwell wrote Animal Farm to warn of the dangers of a totalitarian regime in the practical application of communist ideology. His novella reflects his experience of, and response to, momentous events occurring in Europe in the first half of the twentieth century. It is a acknowledgement of the extent to which totalitarian leaders rely on the manipulation of thoughts and actions in order to maintain power across the class boundaries. In this essay, Orwell’s political and personal standpoints are examined and the book is analysed from a Marxist and socialist perspective. Whereas Animal Farm was written to reflect the terrible experience of Orwell and many of his contemporaries, its message is in many ways limited by his efforts to adhere to a parody of the events in Soviet Russia. Attention is given to the role of propaganda and Squealer, the chief propagandist in Animal Farm. Although Squealer does not wield power overtly in the way that Napoleon does, he is pivotal in the maintenance of a cowed population. Further, and more importantly from the point of view of the Marxist criticism of Orwell's novella, the Author is found wanting in his depiction of the working classes and his ability to champion those upon whom he in actual fact looked down.

The Great Gatsby är en berömd roman som först publicerades år 1926 och skrevs av F. Scott Fitzgerald. Den är väldigt kritisk till den Amerikanska drömmen, ett koncept som har blivit starkt kopplat till kapitalismen. Detta gör det lättare att analysera texten från ett Marxistiskt perspektiv trots att marxism aldrig nämns i romanen. Denna C-uppsats kommer att fokusera på vad som motiverar karaktärerna i romanen. Eftersom romanens huvudperson Jay Gatsby redan har blivit analyserad i väldigt många artiklar och uppsatser så kommer han inte analyseras i denna uppsats. Istället kommer den att fokusera på de andra framstående karaktärerna som Daisy, Tom, Myrtle, George och Nick. När deras motivationer analyseras genom ett Marxistiskt analytiskt perspektiv framkommer det väldigt tydligt att dessa karaktärer har insett att samhället de lever i inte uppfyller deras behov, och att detta kommersialiserade samhälle är orsaken för deras olycka. / The Great Gatsby is a famous novel first published in 1926, written by F. Scott Fitzgerald. The novel frequently criticizes the American dream, a concept which has become strongly linked to capitalism. As such, the text lends itself very well to Marxist theory despite not mentioning Marxism in the novel.  This C-essay will focus on what motivates the characters of this novel. Since the novels main character Jay Gatsby has been analyzed in many articles and essays he will not be analyzed in this essay. Instead it will focus on the other prominent characters such as Daisy, Tom, Myrtle, George and Nick. When their motivations are analyzed through a Marxist analytical perspective it becomes very clear that these characters have realized that society is not fulfilling their needs, and that their commercialized society is the cause of their unhappiness.

<p>Denna uppsats innehåller en kvalitativ analys av ett antal läroboksskildringar av den marxistiska idétraditionen i svenska gymnasieläroböcker i historia, samhällskunskap och religion. Undersökningen analyserar hinder för elevens förståelse av den marxistiska idétraditionen utifrån frågeställningarna om i vilken grad texterna på ett upplysande och rättvisande sätt skildrar den idétraditionen förstådd utifrån marxisters självbild. Denna självbild representeras av ett antal utvalda marxistiska auktoriteter. Slutsatser som kan dras utifrån analysen är att påtagliga brister finns i de flesta av de undersökta texterna både i avseende på hur upplysande och rättvisande deras beskrivningar är. Många missvisande framställningar av idéer samt felaktiga förklaringar och brukanden av olika begrepp gör att många texter på flera punkter inte kan sägas ge en rättvisande skildring. När det gäller huruvida skildringarna är upplysande är detta ett större problem än det förra då många författare slarvar med förklaringar av begrepp samt klargöranden av vilka de refererar till när de beskriver olika idéer. Denna brist i att göra skildringarna upplysande är den allvarligaste bristen i de undersökta läroböckerna, en brist som på ett mycket påtagligt sätt riskerar att hindra och missleda elevens förståelse.</p>

The purpose of this dissertation was to explore and understand how the dominant ideological effect of capitalism has influenced the development of one local ten-year plan to end homelessness in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania. Ten-year plans to end homelessness were instituted through a national initiative launched by the Bush Administration in 2003. The Allegheny County Homeless Alliance Advisory Board (HAAB) was studied because they were the appointed group held responsible for the implementation of the local plan. The literature review established a context for homelessness and capitalism, exploring how the two concepts are connected. Analysis occurred on multiple levels to reveal power-based constraints in both a local, extralocal, and theoretical context. The study was conducted utilizing an extended case method approach, exploring sociological aspects of capitalist phenomenon utilizing Marxist tradition. Data was gathered during open ended interviews with HAAB members, participant observation of meetings, field notes, and within document analysis of three years of quarterly meetings. The study revealed an association between submerged and tightly interwoven internal and external systems of control as exerted by the local governmental body responsible for implementing the group's plan. Secondary outcomes indicated that there were increased levels of awareness and communication among the diverse membership of the HAAB. Furthermore, the data illustrated that internal networks and relationships had spawned transformative actions outside of the institutionalized governmental structure of the group. The theoretical findings in this dissertation indicate that Marxism can be reconstructed and extended to better explain the dehumanizing effects of capitalism. The research suggests that praxical transformation of embedded capitalist-driven social relationships can be initiated through a cyclical process of reflection, evaluation, education, and critical discourse. Furthermore, empowering and educating group participants to carry out plan implementation through democratically-informed consensus building processes may be more effective than bureaucratic-led, state-run, government-driven approaches to ending homelessness. Expanded research focusing on how capitalism influences interpersonal relationships and corresponding institutional structures is needed to better reveal unjust power-based relationships that defeat the purpose of plans to eradicate homelessness and poverty. / Dissertation Chair: Dr. Harvey Holtz (Retired) Dissertation Committee Members: Dr. Melanie Hildebrandt and Dr. Thomas VanDyke