A review by thevampiremars
Why Marx Was Right by Terry Eagleton

challenging dark lighthearted medium-paced

3.0

Why Marx Was Right is exceptionally accessible – no background in philosophy or familiarity with leftist theory necessary. I feel as though a more appropriate title would have been “Why Marx Wasn’t Wrong,” however, since the book is dedicated to debunking common misconceptions about Marx and his philosophy. With a title like Why Marx Was Right, I’d expect the author to focus on what Marxism is, not what it isn’t.

There are quite a few points on which Eagleton and I disagree (he is pro-state, pro-military, pro-police, and seems to view capitalism as something of a necessary evil when it comes to technological advancement) but I won’t pick that apart here. I do appreciate him not making any excuses for atrocities committed in the name of communism, though – he disavows Maoism and Stalinism, referring to them as “botched, bloody experiments.”

Something I really didn’t enjoy was Eagleton’s habit of casually bringing up serious subjects for humour, hyperbole, or just plain shock value. This is grating at best, and potentially triggering at worst. The problem isn’t that these topics mustn’t ever be discussed, it’s that they’re being treated in a way which is recklessly insensitive. And it’s completely unnecessary too, which makes it all the more frustrating. Edginess for the sake of edginess is dull.

The book gradually mutates into an anti-SJW rant, complaining about political correctness and multiculturalism, and using the terms “postmodernist” and “liberal” to refer to any progressive the author deems too soft. There’s one part where he complains about liberals being opposed to hierarchy which... just isn’t true. I assume he must mean anarchists? But “liberal” and “anarchist” are not synonymous at all. Later, he responds to the argument that Marxism is Eurocentric by calling his imaginary opponents “simpleminded” and accusing them of reverse racism. The fact that all this is in a book about dismantling straw men is just *chef kiss*

Despite all this, I can’t really describe Why Marx Was Right as a bad book. There are some good points and some bad takes, which is why I’m giving it three stars. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Torture, and Violence

Minor: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Cancer, Child death, Genocide, Pedophilia, Racism, Rape, Slavery, Vomit, Police brutality, Islamophobia, Mass/school shootings, and Cannibalism

Eagleton has a habit of bringing up potentially triggering subjects for shock value, so I've included all the ones I can remember being mentioned in the Minor category. Those topics which are discussed a little more in depth I've put in the Moderate category. Also: war and starvation are talked about a few times throughout the book, and incarceration, executions, colonialism, climate catastrophe, nuclear war, and the Holocaust are all mentioned at one point or another (I couldn't find these topics in the trigger warnings list)