Marxist humanism

[[File:Henri Lefebvre 1971.jpg|thumb|left|[[Henri Lefebvre]]|180px]]

[[File:Henri Lefebvre 1971.jpg|thumb|left|[[Henri Lefebvre]]|180px]]

In 1939, [[Henri Lefebvre]], then a member of the [[French Communist Party]] (PCF), published a brief but revolutionary study of Marxist philosophy, ''Dialectical Materialism''. In this work, Lefebvre argued that the Marxist dialectic is based on the concepts of [[Marx's theory of alienation|alienation]] and [[Praxis (process)|praxis]], rather than the "Dialectics of Nature" found in [[Friedrich Engels|Friedrich Engels's]] writings. Lefebvre drew heavily from the recently published ''1844 Manuscripts'', which he was the first to translate into French.{{sfn|Soper|1986|p=84}}

In 1939, [[Henri Lefebvre]], then a member of the [[French Communist Party]] (PCF), published a brief study of Marxist philosophy, ''Dialectical Materialism''. In this work, Lefebvre argued that the Marxist dialectic is based on the concepts of [[Marx's theory of alienation|alienation]] and [[Praxis (process)|praxis]], rather than the "Dialectics of Nature" found in [[Friedrich Engels|Friedrich Engels's]] writings. Lefebvre drew heavily from the recently published ''1844 Manuscripts'', which he was the first to translate into French.{{sfn|Soper|1986|p=84}}

However, it was not until the suppression of the [[Hungarian Uprising of 1956]] that French Communist Party dissidents openly challenged the Marxist orthodoxy. This shift was marked by the creation of the journal ''[[Arguments Group|Arguments]]'', edited by Lefebvre, [[Edgar Morin]], [[Jean Duvignaud]], [[Kostas Axelos]], and [[Pierre Fougeyrollas]] — all former or current members of the PCF. The journal became a focal point for a new Marxist humanist critique of Stalinism.{{sfn|Soper|1986|p=84}}

However, it wasn’t until 1956, following the suppression of the [[Hungarian Uprising of 1956|Hungarian Uprising]], that

French Communist Party dissidents openly challenged the Marxist orthodoxy. This shift was marked by the creation of the journal ''[[Arguments Group|Arguments]]'', edited by Lefebvre, [[Edgar Morin]], [[Jean Duvignaud]], [[Kostas Axelos]], and [[Pierre Fougeyrollas]] — all former or current members of the PCF. The journal became a focal point for a new Marxist humanist critique of Stalinism.{{sfn|Soper|1986|p=84}}

The ''1844 Manuscripts'' became a central reference for the journal, and existentialism had a significant influence on its approach. Lefebvre, for instance, looked to Sartre for a theory of alienation under capitalism. Lefebvre argued that alienation encompassed not only labor, but also [[consumerism]], [[culture]], [[semiotics|systems of meaning]], and [[language]] within capitalist society. Other members of the ''Arguments'' group were influenced by [[Martin Heidegger]]’s critique of Western metaphysics. Kostas Axelos and Pierre Fougeyrollas, for example, followed Heidegger in viewing Marxism as flawed by its traditional metaphysical assumptions, and questioned the "less-than-human" values of Marxist humanism.{{sfn|Soper|1986|p=84}}

The ''1844 Manuscripts'' became a central reference for the journal, and existentialism had a significant influence on its approach. Lefebvre, for instance, looked to Sartre for a theory of alienation under capitalism. Lefebvre argued that alienation encompassed not only labor, but also [[consumerism]], [[culture]], [[semiotics|systems of meaning]], and [[language]] within capitalist society. Other members of the ''Arguments'' group were influenced by [[Martin Heidegger]]’s critique of Western metaphysics. Kostas Axelos and Pierre Fougeyrollas, for example, followed Heidegger in viewing Marxism as flawed by its traditional metaphysical assumptions, and questioned the "less-than-human" values of Marxist humanism.{{sfn|Soper|1986|p=84}}