Reason in Revolt¶

Core Argument¶

Reason in Revolt sets out to demonstrate that dialectical materialism—the philosophical foundation of Marxism—has been confirmed, not superseded, by the most advanced scientific discoveries of the twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. The central thesis is that nature operates dialectically, and that Frederick Engels' nineteenth-century scientific writings, particularly Dialectics of Nature and Anti-Dühring, anticipated the fundamental insights of modern physics, biology, and complexity theory. Far from being outdated, Engels' three laws of dialectics—the transformation of quantity into quality, the interpenetration of opposites, and the negation of the negation—are shown to be the most adequate method for grasping reality in its motion, contradiction, and infinite richness.

The book argues that capitalism's decline has produced a corresponding regression into irrationalism, religious fundamentalism, and intellectual poverty. The bourgeoisie, once the standard-bearer of rationalism and atheism during its revolutionary youth, now embraces superstition and mysticism, as evidenced by the rise of creationism, the "intelligent design" movement, and idealist interpretations of quantum mechanics and cosmology. Against this ideological offensive, the authors contend that dialectical materialism provides the only coherent defence of scientific rationality, and that the crisis of capitalism is generating renewed interest in Marxism as a philosophy of the future.

Overview¶

The work is structured as the first volume of a planned trilogy covering the three component parts of Marxism: dialectical materialism, historical materialism, and Marxist economics. It opens with an extended polemic against the irrationalism of contemporary bourgeois culture, arguing that the decay of capitalism manifests not only economically but as widespread pessimism, anxiety, and the proliferation of superstition. Consciousness lags behind material development, the authors argue, and scientists who profess indifference to politics and philosophy remain prey to prevailing prejudices. The only defence against idealist mysticism is dialectical materialism.

The theoretical grounding is established through a detailed exposition of dialectical materialism as a method. The authors trace the history of philosophy as a struggle between materialism and idealism, showing how the division between mental and manual labour created the illusion that ideas have independent existence—the heart of philosophical idealism. Marx and Engels inverted Hegel's idealist dialectic, insisting that the material world is primary and consciousness its reflection. The three laws of dialectics are demonstrated across nature: phase transitions in physics, the periodic table in chemistry, punctuated equilibria in biology, and the development of capitalist society in Marx's Capital. Formal logic is shown to be valid only within narrow limits, adequate for simple, static phenomena but incapable of grasping movement, change, and contradiction.

The book then applies this method to the most contentious areas of modern science. Relativity theory is defended against idealist interpretations, with the authors arguing that Einstein's work confirms the dialectical materialist view of time as an objective expression of matter's constant change. The Copenhagen interpretation of quantum mechanics is subjected to sustained critique for its subjectivist denial of causality at the atomic level. The Big Bang theory is rejected as a secular creation myth fundamentally at odds with dialectical materialism, with the authors arguing that the material universe is infinite and eternal, and that the theory's persistence reflects not cosmic truth but the pessimistic outlook of a society at an impasse.

The biological sections mount a thoroughgoing critique of genetic determinism and sociobiology, exposing their ideological function in justifying social inequality under capitalism. The Human Genome Project is presented as having dealt a mortal blow to claims of biological determinism by revealing the small number of human genes and humanity's evolutionary kinship with all life. The emergence of humanity is treated through Engels' labour theory of anthropogenesis, arguing that tool-making—not consciousness or language—was the decisive force in human evolution. The fossil record is interpreted through the lens of punctuated equilibria, which the authors present as a vindication of the dialectical law of the transformation of quantity into quality.

The final sections turn to chaos and complexity theory, which the authors argue provide striking confirmation of dialectical materialism despite their proponents' ignorance of Marx and Engels. The book closes with a vision of socialism as humanity's leap from necessity into freedom, arguing that the staggering advances of science can only be placed at humanity's disposal through the abolition of class society and the establishment of a democratically planned world economy.

Chapter Guide¶

Acknowledgements — Credits individuals who contributed to the book's interdisciplinary scope spanning biology, genetics, evolution, chaos theory, geology, religion, cosmology, and child psychology.
Author's Introduction to eBook Edition — Argues that twenty years of scientific advance have vindicated Engels' dialectical materialism, particularly through chaos theory, punctuated equilibria, and the human genome project.
Author's Preface to the Second English Edition — Reflects on the decade since first publication, presenting the crisis of capitalism and scientific discoveries as confirmation of dialectical materialism against creationism, biological determinism, and postmodernism.
Authors' Foreword — Establishes the book's occasion as the centenary of Engels' death and its purpose as testing whether Engels' philosophical writings have stood the test of time.
Part One: Reason and Unreason — Contends that capitalism's decline has produced cultural decay and irrationalism, with scientists prey to prevailing prejudices that only dialectical materialism can resist.
Philosophy and Religion — Traces the origins of religion and philosophical idealism to the division between mental and manual labour, and the history of philosophy as a struggle between materialism and idealism.
Dialectical Materialism — Presents the three laws of dialectics with examples from physics, chemistry, biology, and society, showing how Marx inverted Hegel's idealist dialectic.
Formal Logic and Dialectics — Argues that formal logic is valid only for simple, static phenomena, while dialectical thinking is necessary for grasping movement, change, and contradiction.
Notes for Part One — Provides citations anchoring the theoretical exposition in Marxist classics and modern scientific literature on chaos and complexity theory.
Part Two: Time, Space and Motion — Traces the dialectical movement of light and matter theory, arguing that the search for ultimate particles is a metaphysical illusion.
Uncertainty and Idealism — Critiques the Copenhagen interpretation of quantum mechanics as subjective idealism, defending causality and objective material existence.
Relativity Theory — Argues that relativity theory confirms dialectical materialism's view of time as an objective expression of matter's constant change.
The Arrow of Time — Mounts a sustained critique of the "heat death" cosmology, arguing that the second law of thermodynamics is misapplied when extended to the universe as a whole.
The Big Bang — Presents a Marxist critique of Big Bang theory as a secular creation myth at odds with dialectical materialism.
Notes for Part Two — Provides citations for the polemic against idealist interpretations of quantum mechanics and cosmology.
Part Three: Life, Mind and Matter — Presents earth's geological history as a dialectical process of gradual change punctuated by catastrophic leaps.
How Life Arose — Argues that life emerged as a necessary, qualitative leap in matter's development, governed by natural physical and chemical laws.
The Revolutionary Birth of Humankind — Grounds human emergence in labour as the decisive force, arguing that tool-making drove brain expansion and language development.
The Genesis of Mind — Argues that the human mind is the highest product of material evolution, forged through labour, language, and social interaction.
Marxism and Darwinism — Navigates the relationship between Darwinian evolution and Marxist theory, endorsing punctuated equilibria while rejecting Social Darwinism and Malthusianism.
The "Selfish Gene"? — Mounts a thoroughgoing critique of biological determinism, exposing its ideological function in justifying social inequality under capitalism.
Notes for Part Three — Provides citations for the Marxist analysis of evolution, consciousness, and human origins against reductionist biology.
Part Four: Order out of Chaos — Argues that mathematics arises from practical human activity and that chaos theory vindicates dialectical materialism.
Chaos Theory — Presents chaos theory as an unwitting confirmation of dialectical materialism, particularly the law of transformation of quantity into quality.
The Theory of Knowledge — Defends dialectical materialism as the only coherent foundation for scientific inquiry against both naïve empiricism and idealist regression.
Alienation and the Future of Humanity — Argues that only socialism can overcome the alienation produced by capitalism and realise humanity's potential.
Notes for Part Four — Provides citations for the sections on mathematics, chaos theory, and the theory of knowledge.
Bibliography — Presents the intellectual scaffolding for a Marxist-materialist account of science, nature, and history through a curated selection of sources.
Glossary of Terms — Establishes a shared vocabulary for scientific and dialectical materialist concepts, framed within a Marxist epistemological perspective.

Key Concepts¶

Dialectical materialism — The philosophical foundation of Marxism, holding that matter is primary, consciousness its reflection, and that reality develops through internal contradictions and qualitative leaps.

Three laws of dialectics — The transformation of quantity into quality, the interpenetration of opposites, and the negation of the negation; the fundamental laws governing development in nature, society, and thought.

Punctuated equilibria — Stephen Jay Gould's theory that evolution proceeds through long periods of stasis interrupted by sudden bursts of change, presented as confirmation of dialectical leaps.

Labour theory of anthropogenesis — Engels' argument that tool-making and social labour, not consciousness or language, were the decisive forces driving human evolution.

Genetic determinism — The reactionary ideology claiming that behaviour, intelligence, and social position are fixed by genes, which the book subjects to sustained critique.

Copenhagen interpretation — The subjectivist interpretation of quantum mechanics that denies causality at the atomic level, rejected as philosophical idealism.

Big Bang theory — Characterised as a secular creation myth fundamentally at odds with dialectical materialism's insistence on the infinity and eternity of matter.

Chaos theory — The study of non-linear dynamical systems, presented as an unwitting confirmation of dialectical laws, particularly the transformation of quantity into quality.

Alienation — Marx's concept of the estrangement of labour under capitalism, where workers are reduced to tools and social life is dominated by blind market forces.

Formal logic — The static, non-contradictory logic adequate for simple phenomena but incapable of grasping movement, change, and the unity of opposites.

Chapters¶

29 chapters