Joe Attard of the KCL Marxists discusses the new Royal Academy of the Arts exhibition on Russian Art: 1917-1932, and responds to Guardian art critic, Jonathan Jones, and his hypocritical tirade against the Russian Revolution, Lenin, and the Bolsheviks.
In the final part of his series commemorating the life and ideas of the Bard, Alan Woods looks at Shakespeare’s poetic genius and examines the revolutionary role played by the writer in terms of the development of the English language.
In the third and penultimate part of his series commemorating the life and ideas of the Bard, Alan Woods looks at the central role of politics, plots, and intrigues in Shakespeare’s plays, and – in particular – his attitude towards the idea of social revolution.
We publish here the second of a four-part series by Alan Woods, commemorating the life and ideas of the Bard, 400 years since his death. In this part, Alan discusses the role of religion in Shakespeare’s plays and examines the transitory social conditions of the time in England, which had such a profound impact on this literary giant.
Shakespeare transformed English literature, reaching heights that before were unheard of and which have not been reached subsequently. His impact on world literature was arguably greater than any other writer. In the first of a four-part series, Alan Woods commemorates the life and ideas of the Bard, 400 years since his death.
At the recent Red October 2015 event, Alan Woods – editor of In Defence of Marxism – gave a talk on Marxism and Art. We publish here some thoughts on the topic by Kit MacDougall of the Glasgow Marxists, based on the discussion at Red October.
Lenin once remarked that, “Capitalist society is and has always been horror without end.” It is a feeling unconsciously shared by millions and reflected in the popularity of the horror genre since the very beginning of cinema, demonstrating the anxieties and fears in the society of the times.
We publish here a letter from a comrade in West Yorkshire, who highlights Jeremy Corbyn’s programme for culture and the arts. Rather than simply protecting funding for the arts, socialists should be arguing for a revolution in how art is created, displayed, and distributed – and, in turn, for a revolution in how society is run and organised.
In this speech to the ULCU Marxist Society, Alan Woods – Marxist author and editor of www.marxist.com – explores the question of art from a Marxist perspective, looking at the history of art from a materialist perspective – from the early art of cave drawings, through to the revolutionary paintings of Pablo Picasso. In doing so, Alan Woods touches on questions such as “what is art?” and discusses what would be possible in terms of art under a socialist society.
The last few years have seen a number of Hollywood film companies marking their centenary anniversaries. Marxists see film, as with other art forms, as providing a reflection of class society and its structures. Bob Stothard looks over the long history of film and what it can tell us.
As with the sites of production of other commodities, the sites of media production are simultaneously sites of struggle. Journalists and other media workers can and must struggle against the domination of capital over their professions and over humankind.
Perhaps nothing elicits more disagreement and debate among Marxists and other left activists than a discussion about the media. There is no doubt that the mass media is omnipresent, mediating every aspect of our lives. How one relates to and interprets the world is largely colored by how the media informs us. On the eve of the release of the Leveson report, we publish this Marxist analysis of the media from a correspondent in the USA.