The Young Karl Marx

The Young Karl Marx is an innovative and important new study of Marx’s early writings. These writings provide the fascinating spectacle of a powerful and imaginative intellect wrestling with complex and significant issues, but they also present formidable interpretative obstacles to modern readers. David Leopold shows how an understanding of their intellectual and cultural context can illuminate the political dimension of these works. An erudite yet accessible discussion of Marx’s influences and targets frames the author’s critical engagement with Marx’s account of the emergence, character, and (future) replacement of the modern state. This combination of historical and analytical approaches results in a sympathetic, but not uncritical, exploration of such fundamental themes as alienation, citizenship, community, antisemitism, and utopianism. The Young Karl Marx is a scholarly and original work which provides a radical and persuasive reinterpretation of Marx’s complex and often misunderstood views of German philosophy, modern politics, and human flourishing.

• Provides a clear and accessible account of difficult and unfamiliar concepts used by Marx • Discusses the historical context as well as the analytical structure of Marx’s arguments • Offers an innovative and well-founded interpretation of Marx’s political and philosophical thought

Acknowledgements; A note on language, references, and translation; 1. Introduction; 2. German philosophy; 3. Modern politics; 4. Human flourishing; 5. Epilogue; Bibliographical note.