Study Questions for Marsh

  1. Why is Marxism going “out of fashion”?
  2. What is Marsh’s main purpose for this article? How does he intend to support this purpose?
  3. Describe classical Marxism.
  4. What is the primary emphasis of classical Marxism? What does Marsh point to in explaining its evolution?
  5. Why did Marxism change? What is Marsh’s main argument concerning this change? How convincing is he?
  6. In Marsh’s view, how strong is Marxism today? What are the main problems of its critics?
  7. Describe contemporary Marxism.
  8. How are classical epistemological positions important in approaching problems in social science?
  9. How did the collapse of the Soviet Union actually strengthen the Marxist approach? How convincing is this argument?
  10. What is the significance of the New Right’s recent decline as argued by Marsh? How has this helped Marxism? How convincing is this argument?
  11. What is the role of inequalities in the rise of contemporary Marxism? How convincing is Marsh in this argument?
  12. Analyze Marsh’s conclusion. How convincing are the conclusions that he has drawn? How important is the Marxist approach to the study of politics? How is it possible for such an old theory to maintain pertinence?
  13. How can Marxism be useful in the study of American Politics?

Things to look for/keep in mind for future readings:

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