The relationship between Marxism and imperialism has been established since the writings of Marx himself. Particularly in Capital, Volume I, Marx discusses the international division of labour caused by the expansion of capital in Ch.15, English capital in Ireland in Ch.25, as well as engaging with a theory of colonialism in Ch.33 ([1867] 1992a). Marx’s own views on both colonialism and imperialism have been well discussed in critical analysis of both his well- and lesser-known texts, many of which are presented in the compendium text ‘On Colonialism’ (Marx & Engels 2001; see, also, Pradella 2013; Nimtz 2002). However, the study of imperialism post-Marx grew from a belief that, while some analysis of imperialism was present in the works of Marx, a dedicated analysis of the state and the international sphere had been left at an embryonic stage. This is broadly true but this view has received criticism based on historiographical analysis of both Marx and the earliest authors on imperialism (Pradella 2013). The phenomenon of imperialism, while still discussed by Marx in a number of instances, was not given the same sustained critical attention as other issues in Marx’s work. This is the point at which Marxism’s engagement with imperialism becomes more profound and substantial. Imperialism, therefore, to Marxism has always been a ‘problem’ of some form. Indeed, the ‘problem’ of imperialism derives from a number of perceived sources: gaps in Marx’s own writing; an explanation for why capitalism endures; an account of the phenomenon of globalisation. It is the contention of this chapter, then, that the on-going relationship between Marxism and imperialism reveals one of Marxism’s main strengths, and its clear weaknesses. It reveals Marxism’s capacity to explain new phenomena coupled with a rigorous and critical method; however, it also reveals a reliance on systemic explanations for contingent developments, and a considerable partisanship between radical thinkers. This relationship between Marxism and imperialism therefore begins early in the 20th Century with the work of the ‘classical’ authors of imperialism, building on the work of Marx and critiquing extant understandings of imperialism, particularly John Hobson’s. This chapter charts the origins of this relationship and its various iterations throughout the 20th century until the present. This relationship has, fundamentally, changed very little, deriving largely from Marx’s own work, and the work of the first Marxist theorists of imperialism. Indeed, the relationship is iterative rather than developmental, with particular ideas within Marxist theories of imperialism recurring perpetually. Most notably, the overarching power of Finance, or monopoly capital, within capitalism, and the idea of imperialism as a qualitatively distinct ‘stage’ of capitalist development are extremely powerful ideas within the tradition of Marxist theories of imperialism. The paper will be split into three sections according to various ‘phases’ of Marxist thought on imperialism: firstly, the ‘classical’ Marxists, from Hilferding to Lenin; secondly, the ‘neo- Colonialist’ thinkers; and finally, the ‘New’ imperialists.
Sutton, Alex
Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences\Department of Social Sciences
Year of publication: 2015Date of RADAR deposit: 2018-11-29