Gabriel Rockhill - Western Marxism and the Colonial Question
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Western Marxism, the Colonial Question, & the Non-Communist Left
This talk examines how Maurice Merleau‑Ponty’s embrace of non‑communist “Western Marxism” was a direct ideological reaction to the Korean War, marking his explicit refusal to support anti‑imperialist national liberation against Western colonialism. By condemning victorious socialist revolutions as “regimes,” he forged a model of critique that severed the Western intelligentsia from solidarity with actually existing anti‑colonial struggles. This accommodationist politics objectively served the US national security state’s psychological warfare campaigns to divide the left, while also establishing an intellectual blueprint that would help shape French Theory’s enduring function as a domesticated, empire‑friendly alternative to revolutionary Marxism.
This talk examines how Maurice Merleau‑Ponty’s embrace of non‑communist “Western Marxism” was a direct ideological reaction to the Korean War, marking his explicit refusal to support anti‑imperialist national liberation against Western colonialism. By condemning victorious socialist revolutions as “regimes,” he forged a model of critique that severed the Western intelligentsia from solidarity with actually existing anti‑colonial struggles. This accommodationist politics objectively served the US national security state’s psychological warfare campaigns to divide the left, while also establishing an intellectual blueprint that would help shape French Theory’s enduring function as a domesticated, empire‑friendly alternative to revolutionary Marxism.
This event is hosted by Red Ant as part of Rockhill's tour of so-called Australia. See all events here.