The International Marxist Tendency proudly presents a new issue of the In Defence of Marxism magazine.

In What Is To Be Done?, Lenin famously said that “without revolutionary theory there can be no revolutionary movement.” In Defense of Marxism provides timely analysis, not just of current issues, but also questions relating to history, philosophy, economics, science and culture. There has never been a more pressing need for a clear theoretical response that can answer the bourgeois and reformist skeptics and cut through the distortions about Marxism.

The 46th issue is about art and the Marxist understanding of its relationship to society. It includes an editoral by Alan Woods on the crisis of art under capitalism and the necessity of the working class to claim all of the great cultural conquests of the past as part of its total emancipation. It also includes articles on the role of art in revolutionary struggles and the future of art under communism; a study of the Ancient Greek drama, one of the greatest achievements of human culture, and the profound influence it has had up to the present; an article on the role of poetry in society and the revival of interest in poetry amongst the youth; and finally, an article written by Trotsky in 1926, which contains a number of profound insights into the role of culture in society, the relationship between the development of technology and that of culture, and the role of culture in the construction of socialism.

We believe this issue should be considered required reading for anyone wishing to deeper understand the questions of art and culture and their role in society. We hope you enjoy it!