Rev Left Radio [BEST OF] "The 18th Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte" by Karl Marx
May 18, 2025
Dive into Marx's analysis of Louis Bonaparte's political ascent and the turbulence of 19th-century France. Explore how class struggles shaped revolutions and the alarming connections between Bonapartism and modern fascism. Discover the significance of historical narratives in contemporary movements, and the precarious state of democracy amid urban militarization. Unpack the complexities of the proletariat and peasantry, and examine the conservative nature of the American Revolution as a crucial chapter in the broader context of class conflict and identity.
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Bonapartism as Proto-Fascism
- Bonapartism claims to represent all classes but masks deep class conflict and authoritarian rule.
- It foreshadows modern fascism's failure to reconcile class contradictions and exposes the state's brutal repression.
History's Constraints and Agency
- People make history but under conditions they do not choose, shaped by past legacies.
- Revolutionary success depends on decisive action amid constraints, not mere inevitability.
State as Bourgeois Class Instrument
- The bourgeois parliamentary state reflects capitalist class interests, not neutrality.
- Its form mediates class conflicts but is prone to failure, showing the limits of reform without revolution.
