Towards the Understanding of Karl Marx: A Revolutionary Interpretation Book

This is an old classic that I never got around to reading until now. Though Sidney Hook was a committed Marxist when he wrote it in 1933 (he would swing to the right later in life), the book can be appreciated regardless of where one sits on the political spectrum. If you want to understand Marxism, this is an informative volume that provides the perspective of a major intellectual who was a true believer. I gave the book four stars not because I think Hook was right (he clearly wasn't) but because the book has much value, as history and philosophy, despite it flawed opinions.

Hook provides a fairly thorough overview of Marx's philosophical views, covering all the major points ' the influence of Hegal, historical materialism, Marx's economic analyses, the theories of class struggle, state and revolution, etc. ' while also discussing the views of important early twentieth century Marxists, such as Kautsky, Luxemburg, Bernstein, Lenin, and others. Well written and readable, the book would be very informative to those who have not already studied the subject deeply (and still interesting even to those who have.)

With all that said, what really stood out for me while reading this was how history has proven so much of Marx's thinking wrong and made his theories outdated. While of course there are still aspects of his thinking that still have important relevance, it becomes clear while reading this old classic that the world has moved far beyond the socio-economic realities of Marx's days (and even Hook's days). Technology, systemic changes, the general improvement of living standards, and other factors have made it hard to take the Marxian call for proletariat revolution seriously. If more people would read books like this, the contemporary glamorization of Marx would quickly subside and more relevant political and economic solutions might make their way to the forefront.