logo
episode-header-image
Apr 2025
1h 10m

Marxism 101: Intro to Historical Materia...

REVOLUTIONARY LEFT RADIO
About this episode

In this lecture, Breht provides an accessible but rigorous introduction to the Marxist theory of history: historical materialism. Breht explains how historical materialism is dialectical materialism applied to the evolution of human societies over time, the role that the base-superstructure model has in understanding culture and ideology, the long march from hunter-gatherer communal societies to slave empires to feudal monarchies to capitalist republics and beyond - to socialist democracy and ultimately to the communist transcendence of class society altogether, marking humanities maturation beyond its predatory phase and into history proper. Throughout the lecture, Breht provides examples, explores nuances, and highlights the pitfalls of attempts to change the system without the theoretical and practical tools of Marxism. 

This lecture is part of the Omaha-based political education program Socialist Night School

Support 3 families in Gaza HERE

-------------------------------------------------------------

Support Rev Left and get access to bonus episodes: www.patreon.com/revleftradio

Make a one-time donation to Rev Left at BuyMeACoffee.com/revleftradio

Follow, Subscribe, & Learn more about Rev Left Radio HERE Outro Beat Prod. by flip da hood

Up next
Aug 12
Red Star Ministry: Marxism, Theology, & The Human Condition
Alyson and Breht are guests on the Red Star Ministry Podcast, a Christian Communist outlet. Together with the host Christian, they discuss Alyson and Breht's evolving personal relationship with religion and atheism, the Dialectics of Nature and Human Consciousness, Spinozist Phil ... Show More
1h 58m
Aug 8
Philosophy Series: Hegel, Marx, & Modern Life (Part 2)
Part Two: Breht listens to, comments on, and expounds upon a public lecture by the late professor of philosophy Rick Roderick from 1989 on Hegel, Marx, and modern American capitalism. Along the way he discusses the central role of reproductive labor, the dialectic of feminism in ... Show More
1h 5m
Aug 8
Philosophy Series: Hegel, Marx, & Modern Life (Part 1)
Breht listens to, comments on, and expounds upon a public lecture by the late professor of philosophy Rick Roderick from 1989 on Hegel, Marx, and modern American capitalism. Along the way he explicates the Hegelian notion of Freedom, Right and Left Hegelianism, the End of History ... Show More
1h 15m
Recommended Episodes
Mar 2025
Marxism for the Masses w/ Savannah from All Power Books
Marxism is not some esoteric philosophy meant to be analyzed and discussed in the ivory towers of the academy—not that appreciating Marxism from an intellectual perspective is wrong, or anything—we do that quite a bit—but at its essence, Marxism is a weapon. It’s a tool for chang ... Show More
1h 49m
Jun 2021
Karl Marx's Unique Theory of Social Classes
Brian and Prof. Wolff continue a series of discussions about the basics of Marxism — a method for understanding and changing  the world used by many of the great revolutionaries of modern history. Today, they discuss Karl Marx's theory of classes. Politicians of all stripes love ... Show More
32m 15s
Dec 2024
The Communist Manifesto
Join hosts Fr. Wesley Walker and Dr. Junius Johnson in this engaging episode of The Classical Mind as they dive into Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels' contraversial work, The Communist Manifesto. Discover the historical context of the 1848 publication, the philosophy of historical ... Show More
1h 20m
Feb 2024
Class 5: Marxism
“A specter is haunting Europe—the specter of communism.”—Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, The Communist Manifesto. HIST 271/HUMS 339: European Intellectual History since Nietzsche is a survey course designed to introduce students to the dominant trends in modern European intellect ... Show More
50m 27s
Jun 2023
Socialist Cultures and Politics of Secularism and Atheism
Two new books on secularism and atheism in German and Soviet socialist cultures are reshaping scholarly understandings of the relationship between socialism and religion. Todd Weir and Victoria Smolkin show that socialist secularism and atheism were not concerned solely with dest ... Show More
1h 12m
Sep 2017
Episode 26, Karl Marx's Political Philosophy (Part II)
Website: www.thepanpsycast.com Twitter: www.twitter.com/thepanpsycast Karl Marx is one of the most influential figures in human history. The Prussian-born philosopher, economist, political theorist, sociologist, and revolutionary socialist, produced some of the most controversial ... Show More
37m 50s
Sep 2017
Episode 26, Karl Marx's Political Philosophy (Part I)
Website: www.thepanpsycast.com Twitter: www.twitter.com/thepanpsycast Karl Marx is one of the most influential figures in human history. The Prussian-born philosopher, economist, political theorist, sociologist, and revolutionary socialist, produced some of the most controversial ... Show More
36m 20s
Oct 2017
Episode 26, Karl Marx's Political Philosophy (Part IV)
Website: www.thepanpsycast.com Twitter: www.twitter.com/thepanpsycast Karl Marx is one of the most influential figures in human history. The Prussian-born philosopher, economist, political theorist, sociologist, and revolutionary socialist, produced some of the most controversial ... Show More
1h 3m
Oct 2017
Episode 26, Karl Marx's Political Philosophy (Part III)
Website: www.thepanpsycast.com Twitter: www.twitter.com/thepanpsycast Karl Marx is one of the most influential figures in human history. The Prussian-born philosopher, economist, political theorist, sociologist, and revolutionary socialist, produced some of the most controversial ... Show More
32m 15s
Oct 2024
Why Losurdo's Western Marxism Matters (feat. Gabriel Rockhill)
We are joined by philosopher and Marxist intellectual Gabriel Rockhill to discuss the relevance and importance of the recently translated work, Western Marxism (Monthly Review Press, 2024) by Domenico Losurdo. In this discussion, we analyze Losurdo's book with a focus on extracti ... Show More
1h 25m