Second edition of Reason in Revolt published in Greek
Core Argument¶
The central thesis of this short announcement is that the publication of a second Greek edition of Reason in Revolt is not merely a publishing milestone but a political intervention. The article claims that the Marxist dialectical method, as applied to modern science by Ted Grant and Alan Woods, remains an indispensable weapon for understanding the natural world and, by extension, for grounding revolutionary socialist politics in a materialist worldview. The argument is that nearly three decades after its first publication, the book’s defence of dialectical materialism against both bourgeois positivism and postmodern relativism is more urgent, not less, because the ideological offensive of capital continues to mystify scientific knowledge and separate it from social consciousness.
Theoretical Grounding¶
The analysis draws directly on the classical Marxist tradition of Engels’ Dialectics of Nature and Anti-Dühring, and Lenin’s Materialism and Empirio-Criticism. It situates itself within the broader Marxist theoretical tradition that insists on the unity of the natural and social sciences under the dialectical method. The article implicitly rejects the notion, common in Western Marxism, that dialectics applies only to human history and not to nature. Instead, it reaffirms the orthodox position that the laws of dialectics — the transformation of quantity into quality, the interpenetration of opposites, and the negation of the negation — are objective features of reality itself. This places the argument firmly in the tradition of scientific socialism, as opposed to the various forms of Hegelian or humanist Marxism that have tended to abandon natural science as a field of revolutionary theory.
Conjunctural Relevance¶
The article connects to the current moment by implication rather than explicit data. The conjuncture is one of deepening ideological confusion: climate denialism, anti-vaccination movements, the rise of irrationalism in politics, and the fragmentation of knowledge under late capitalism. The publication of a revised Greek edition speaks to a specific national context — Greece, which has experienced a decade of economic catastrophe, the rise of Syriza and its subsequent betrayal, and the continued weight of the Orthodox Church and nationalist mysticism in public life. The article’s relevance lies in its assertion that without a firm philosophical foundation in dialectical materialism, the working class movement is vulnerable to every passing intellectual fashion. The book is positioned as an antidote to the postmodern relativism that has paralysed much of the left, and to the crude empiricism that reduces science to a mere tool of capital.
Where the Argument Continues¶
This article is a short announcement, not a developed theoretical piece. The argument continues in the full text of Reason in Revolt itself, which remains the definitive Marxist treatment of modern science from quantum mechanics to evolutionary biology. It also connects to Alan Woods’ broader body of work, particularly The History of Philosophy: A Marxist Perspective and his ongoing series of lectures on dialectics available through the In Defence of Marxism website and the Against the Stream podcast. The theoretical argument about the unity of the dialectical method is further developed in the RCI’s ongoing polemics against reformism and opportunism, which treat philosophical confusion as a political weakness. Readers seeking the full case should consult the book directly, alongside Engels’ Dialectics of Nature and Lenin’s Materialism and Empirio-Criticism.
Connections¶
This article should be read alongside:
- Ted Grant and Alan Woods, Reason in Revolt: Marxist Philosophy and Modern Science — the primary text being promoted.
- Frederick Engels, Dialectics of Nature — the foundational text for the Marxist approach to natural science.
- V. I. Lenin, Materialism and Empirio-Criticism — the classic defence of dialectical materialism against idealist and positivist currents.
- Alan Woods, The History of Philosophy: A Marxist Perspective — a companion volume that traces the development of dialectical thought.
- In Defence of Marxism articles on science and philosophy — particularly those addressing climate change, genetics, and the philosophy of science, which apply the same method to contemporary debates.
Key Quotes¶
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“Reason in Revolt is an invaluable Marxist analysis of modern science, applying the dialectical method to the great scientific discoveries of the 20th century.”
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“The second Greek edition features a revised and improved translation, to better bring the lessons of this masterful text to a Greek-speaking audience.”
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“Alan explains the immense enthusiasm that accompanied Reason in Revolt at its initial publication, and notes the enduring importance of a serious, philosophical approach to the sciences, even almost 30 years after the book’s first publication.”
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“The publication of this edition is a testament to the continued relevance of dialectical materialism in an age of ideological confusion and scientific fragmentation.”