Marxism is often caricatured as a dull, grey theory, narrowly focused on politics and economics.

In fact the opposite is true.

As revolutionaries we are not only fighting for bread, but to emancipate the enormous cultural treasures of human civilisation which, today, are in the hands of a small minority. As Leon Trotsky put it, “not by politics alone does man thrive”. Communists must take a keen interest in art and culture, which are integral parts of the development of human society.

In this talk Alan Woods, leading theoretician of the Revolutionary Communist International, will examine some of the great revolutions in art and society, and the role of art in the emancipation of mankind.

Reading list

Articles

• Alan Woods – A muse of fire: art, society and revolution (English) (French)
• Alan Woods – Marxism and art: introduction to Trotsky’s writings on Art and Culture (English)
• Leon Trotsky – Culture and Socialism (English) (French)

Videos

• Jérôme Métellus – Marxism and art (French)