In
The Dialectic of Position and Maneuver, Daniel Egan examines the role that the military metaphors of war of position and war of maneuver play in Antonio Gramsci’s social theory. The foundation for this analysis is the different ways in which Marxists have understood war and military strategy since the mid-nineteenth century. In doing so, Egan argues that the distinction between war of position and war of maneuver which is so central to Gramsci’s work as well as contemporary interpretations of his work must be understood in a more dialectical manner. This conclusion is important not only in terms of Gramsci’s social theory, but also for understanding the limits and possibilities of contemporary political strategies for the left worldwide.
Daniel Egan, Ph.D. in Sociology, Boston College, 1994, is Professor of Sociology at the University of Massachusetts Lowell. His major research and teaching areas are social theory, political sociology, and globalization. His current work focuses on the intersection between military doctrine and social theory.
Acknowledgments
1. Introduction: Marxism and the Military Metaphor
2. Gramsci’s Marxism
Working Class Organization and Revolutionary Politics
Political Relations of Power
3. War of Maneuver and War of Position
War as Metaphor
Analysis of the Metaphor
4. Marxism and Insurrection
Engels and Insurrection
Lenin, Trotsky and Insurrection
The Communist International and Insurrection
The Gramscian Nature of Insurrection
5. Soviet Military Doctrine
Creating the Red Army
Soviet Military Science: Tactics, Operational Art, Strategy
Deep Battle and Gramsci’s War of Position
6 Marxism and Guerrilla Warfare
People’s War
The Foco
The Gramscian Character of Guerrilla Warfare
7. Conclusion: Lessons for Socialist Political Strategy
The Dialectic of Position and Maneuver
The Gramscian War of Position and Twenty-First Century Socialism
References
Index
Anyone interested in Gramsci, Marxist theory more generally, or contemporary left political strategy.