Marxist Introductions
1 total work
It has been agreed that Marxism has little to say about ecological problems, or that it actually legitimizes harm to the environment. In "Marxism and Ecology" Reiner Grundmann thoroughly reconsiders these assumptions. Avoiding simplistic solutions, he focuses on the type of environmental problems that can be analyzed by Marx's theory and asks which of his approaches are still convincing. He argues that Marx's theory of human nature and his evolutionary thinking are cogent tools for understanding basic traits of industrial countries and the ecological problems they produce. He challenges the widespread belief that the development of productive forces is by itself a threat to the environment, arguing that only specific technologies, not technology as such, lead to environmental degradation. He concludes that the pursuit of productivity need not therefore necessarily be in conflict with the development of a healthy environment and examines the extent to which it is possible to create technologies which will allow such development. Teachers and students of political theory, social science, and political philosophy, as well as environmentalists should find this book of interest.