Marxism in a lost century: a biography of Paul Mattick - Gary Roth

Retells the history of the radical left during the twentieth century through the words and deeds of Paul Mattick.

Submitted by Craftwork on September 1, 2016

An adolescent during the German revolutions that followed World War I, Paul Mattick was also a recent émigré to the United States during the 1930s Great Depression, when the unemployed groups in which he participated were among the most dynamic manifestations of social unrest. Three biographical themes receive special attention -- the self-taught nature of left-wing activity, Mattick’s experiences with publishing, and the nexus of men, politics, and friendship. Mattick found a wide audience during the 1960s because of his emphasis on the economy’s dysfunctional aspects and his advocacy of workplace councils—a popularity mirrored in the cyclical nature of the global economy.

Comments

Spikymike

7 years 6 months ago

In reply to by libcom.org

Submitted by Spikymike on September 6, 2016

A rattling good read - highly recomended

Steven.

7 years 6 months ago

In reply to by libcom.org

Submitted by Steven. on September 6, 2016

Never knew what he looked like before. He looks a bit like David Lynch

Hieronymous

7 years 6 months ago

In reply to by libcom.org

Submitted by Hieronymous on September 7, 2016

Steven.

Never knew what he looked like before. He looks a bit like David Lynch

You haven't seen him with a beard. A young African American Johnson-Forest member (John Allen) thought he looked like Marx when they used to meet in the back of a Chicago bar for a Das Kapital readng group. He and his comrades couldn't remember Mattick's name, so they referred to him as "Karl Marx."

I started reading the book a while back, after fnbrill steered me to it, and so far it's really, really good.

Steven.

7 years 6 months ago

In reply to by libcom.org

Submitted by Steven. on September 14, 2016

Steven.

Never knew what he looked like before. He looks a bit like David Lynch

For anyone who doesn't know what David Lynch looks like, Craftwork did this on FB:

Steven.

7 years 6 months ago

In reply to by libcom.org

Submitted by Steven. on September 14, 2016

Hieronymous

Steven.

Never knew what he looked like before. He looks a bit like David Lynch

You haven't seen him with a beard. A young African American Johnson-Forest member (John Allen) thought he looked like Marx when they used to meet in the back of a Chicago bar for a Das Kapital readng group. He and his comrades couldn't remember Mattick's name, so they referred to him as "Karl Marx."

Interesting. You know who else looks like Marx? Escobar in season 2 of Narcos:

Craftwork

6 years 8 months ago

In reply to by libcom.org

Submitted by Craftwork on July 3, 2017

"I do not any longer take terms like marxism and anarchism seriously. I ask people what they think and what they propose to do and watch them to find out what they are actually doing. With some I can associate, with others not. But the isms I can do very well without."

– Paul Mattick to Kenneth Rexroth, 23rd March 1946; quoted from p.239.

Spikymike

3 years 3 months ago

In reply to by libcom.org

Submitted by Spikymike on December 11, 2020

Another review of this book here:
https://libcom.org/blog/revolutionary-contribution-paul-mattick-15092020
And this covers some of the same ground:
https://libcom.org/library/paul-mattick-council-communism-claudio-pozzoli

Submitted by Hieronymous on January 25, 2024

Hieronymous wrote: Steven.

Never knew what he looked like before. He looks a bit like David Lynch

You haven't seen him with a beard. A young African American Johnson-Forest member (John Allen) thought he looked like Marx when they used to meet in the back of a Chicago bar for a Das Kapital readng group. He and his comrades couldn't remember Mattick's name, so they referred to him as "Karl Marx."

Shit, I have to eat my words. I was talking with Paul Mattick Jr., who corrected me by saying "Paul never grew a beard, which he associated with the upper class." Then I realized that by that time, John Allen was suffering from dementia and phasing into and out of coherence and was probably referring to the ol' "Moor" himself.

ZJW

2 months ago

Submitted by ZJW on January 25, 2024

Further on Mattick Sr, at the top of 'The Young Mattick -- Early writings 1924-1934', see 'PREFACE -- A PERSONAL REFLECTION by Marie', at:

https://endnotes.org.uk/dossiers/the-young-mattick