New Books in Critical Theory Massimo Modonesi, "The Antagonistic Principle: Marxism and Political Action" (Haymarket, 2019)
Oct 20, 2025
Massimo Modonesi is a professor at the Autonomous National University of Mexico, focusing on Marxist theory and social movements. Joining him is Maria Vignau, a researcher and educator pursuing her PhD. Together, they delve into the concepts of subalternity, antagonism, and autonomy in political subjectivation. They discuss the complexities of class struggle, the dynamics of resistance versus rebellion, and the challenges facing Latin American social movements today. The conversation also touches on Gramsci's ideas about subalterns and how movements can regain their momentum.
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Marxism's Retreat From Collective Action
- Marxism retreated from analyzing collective action, leaving a gap in understanding political subjectivation.
- Modonesi argues we must recover class-struggle-centered tools to study how subjects form in conflict.
Form Over Content In Movement Studies
- Scholarship often studies the form of movements (e.g., social media) at the expense of their political content.
- Modonesi and Vignau call for re-centering class struggle and subjectivation in movement analysis.
Rebalance Structure With Struggle
- Recent Marxist work emphasizes structure (capital, exploitation) but often neglects class struggle as subjective action.
- The book seeks to restore study of subjectivation and agency alongside structural analysis.
