Michael Denning, a Yale professor, dives into the revolutionary thought of Stuart Hall, the founding figure of cultural studies. They discuss Hall's Marxism, which adapts to the complexities of capitalism and emphasizes the need for active political engagement rather than assumptions about class politics. The conversation also touches on the intersections of race, class, and ideology, particularly through the lens of Thatcherism. Denning reflects on Hall's materialist approach and the significance of understanding historical specificity in combating contemporary societal challenges.
01:38:51
forum Ask episode
web_stories AI Snips
view_agenda Chapters
menu_book Books
auto_awesome Transcript
info_circle Episode notes
question_answer ANECDOTE
Hall's Four Careers
Stuart Hall's career had four 15-year periods.
These included editing New Left Review, directing Birmingham's Center for Contemporary Cultural Studies, teaching at Open University, and engaging with Black arts.
insights INSIGHT
Formative Crises
The 1956 Suez Crisis and 1957 Hungarian Uprising shaped Hall's politics.
These events exposed the shortcomings of traditional Marxist theory and the Old Left.
question_answer ANECDOTE
Hall's Writing Process
Michael Denning recalls observing Hall rewrite an introduction completely.
This highlighted Hall's iterative process and preference for fresh starts over revisions.
Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode
Written during the winter of 1857-58, the 'Grundrisse' develops the arguments outlined in the 'Communist Manifesto' and explores themes that would dominate Marx's later work 'Capital'. It includes Marx's own version of Hegel's dialectics and his mature views on labor, surplus value, and profit, offering insights into alienation, automation, and the dangers of capitalist society. The work provides a unique insight into Marx's wider-ranging philosophy and his hopes for the foundation of a communist state[2][4][5].
Policing the crisis
Stuart Hall
Chas Critcher
Tony Jefferson
Brian Roberts
John Clarke
Set the Earth on Fire
Set the Earth on Fire
David Correa
Black Resistance to British Policing
John Solomos
Aaron Winter
Adam Elliott-Cooper
Satnam Virdee
Adam Elliott-Cooper's "Black Resistance to British Policing" delves into the history of activism against police racism in Britain. The book connects historical and contemporary struggles, analyzing how black resistance challenges global systems of racial exploitation and violence. It examines the role of imperial cultures and policies in shaping contemporary racism, highlighting the enduring legacies of colonialism. The author uses a decade of activist research to explore various forms of resistance, from spontaneous rebellion to organized campaigns. By drawing connections between historical and contemporary struggles, the book offers a crucial framework for understanding and challenging the ongoing power of police and prison systems.
Familiar Stranger
Stuart Hall
Featuring Michael Denning on Stuart Hall’s Marxism—a Marxism without guarantees. This is a comprehensive introduction to Marxism as a method to analyze historically specific, complex and contradictory capitalist social formations, and what that means for making, rather than assuming the existence of, a working-class socialist politics. Next week Dan interviews Denning on Policing the Crisis, a 1978 book collectively authored by Hall and his colleagues; it’s a remarkable project that anticipates today’s politics around anti-immigrant xenophobia, mass incarceration, and Trumpism.
Jacobin Radio 
