Marx’s Theory: Evolutionary or Revolutionary? An update of Gouldner’s statement on the distinction between Scientific Marxism and Critical Marxism

Abstract

The purpose of this article in the field of the history of economic thought is to investigate from a scientific viewpoint whether Marx’s theory is evolutionary or revolutionary by analyzing some main texts of Marx such as The Capital, The German Ideology and The Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte. The idea to be hereby updated was first seen by this author in the book of Alvin Gouldner, The Two Marxisms. Contradictions and Anomalies in the Development of Theory (Gouldner, 1980). Gouldner confronts Scientific Marxism with its emphasis upon the laws of development against Critical Marxism stressing practice and critiques. This question has been addressed in some realms of non-Marxian economics as a critique of the scientific research programme of Marx and Engels. This is due to this is a fundamental Marx’s topic related to his method and to his use of dialectics in his quest for the overcoming of capitalism and ultimately for human emancipation. The result is that the ambiguity between both Marxist theories is related to the fastness of change and method, whereby Critical Marxism is nowadays more relevant. Section 1 is an introduction on the scientific problem at hand. Section 2 is about related problems. Section 3 is a brief analysis of key Marx’s texts. Section 4 updates Goldner’s insights. Section 5 gives open conclusions. References are listed at the end of the article.