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A NEW NOTION: Two Works by

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ISBN 13: 
978-1-60486-047-4
Library of Congress Control No.: 
2009901394
Number of pages: 
155
This edition: 
2010
Blurb: 

In this volume Noel Ignatiev, author of How the Irish Became White, provides an extensive introduction to James' life and thought, before presenting two critical works that together illustrate the tremendous breadth and depth of James' world view. The Invading Socialist Society, for James the fundamental document of his political tendency, shows the power of James' political acumen and its relevance in today's world, with a clarity of analysis that anticipated future events to a remarkable extent. Every Cook Can Govern, is a short and eminently readable piece counterposing direct and representative democracy, and getting to the heart of how we should relate to one another.

Together these two works represent the principal themes that run through James' life: implacable hostility toward all "condescending saviors" of the working class, and undying faith in the power of ordinary people to build a new world.

Contents: 

The World View of C.L.R. James -- Noel Ignatiev

The Invading Socialist Society -- C.L.R. James and Raya Dunayevskaya

Preface to the 2nd Edition -- C.L.R. James

Chapter I: World War II and Social Revolution
Chapter II: State Capitalism
Chapter III: Imperialism Thirty Years After
Chapter IV: Poland -- Where All Roads Meet
Chapter V: Parties, Tendencies and Programs in the Fourth International

Appendix: The Political Economy of Germain

Every Cook Can Govern -- C.L.R. James

Introduction

Every Cook Can Govern: A Study of Democracy in Ancient Greece: Its Meaning for Today

Biographical note(s): 

C.L.R. James was a leading figure in the independence movement in the West Indies, and the black and working-class movements in both Britain and the United States. As a major contributor to Marxist and revolutionary theory, his project was to discover, document, and elaborate the aspects of working-class activity that constitute the revolution in today's world.

Quotes about: 

"Noel Ignatiev's brilliant introduction and C.L.R. James' classic essay on direct democracy in ancient Athens are accesible to every reader, and well worth the price of admission. For some readers, myself included, The Invading Socialist Society will be more challenging. What we need to remember is that it was on the basis of this essay that members of Facing Reality believed that they, and they alone, had predicted the Hungarian Revolution of 1956: a revolution in which workers, acting in a situation that was not an economic crisis, without a political party (vanguard or otherwise), without independent trade unions, and without a newspaper that expressed their views, rose up and almost overnight created a horizontal network of self-governing councils that was governing the country until crushed by Soviet tanks." -- Staughton Lynd, co-author of Wobblies & Zapatistas

"It would take a person with great confidence, and good judgment, to select from the substantial writings of C.L.R. James just two items to represent the 'principal themes' in James' life and thought. Fortunately, Noel Ignatiev is such a person. With a concise, but thorough introduction, Ignatiev sets the stage and C.L.R. James does the rest. In these often confusing times one way to keep ones head on straight and to chart a clear path to the future is to engage the analytical methods and theoretical insights of C.L.R. James. What you hold in your hands is an excellent starting point." -- John H. Bracey Jr., Professor of African-American Studies at the University of Massachussets, Amherst and Coeditor of Papers of the NAACP and Strangers & Neighbors: Relations Between Blacks & Jews in the United States.