Title Apostles and agitators : Italy's Marxist revolutionary tradition / Richard Drake

Published Cambridge, Mass. : Harvard University Press, ©2003

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Description 1 online resource (xi, 273 pages) : illustrations Contents Karl Marx: The word -- Carlo Cafiero: Prophet of anarchist communism -- Antonio Labriola: The philosopher of Praxis -- Arturo Labriola: The revolutionary betrayed -- Benito Mussolini: The indispensable revolutionary -- Amadeo Bordiga: The revolutionary as anti-realpolitiker -- Antonio Gramsci: The revolutionary as centrist -- Palmiro Togliatti: The revolutionary as cultural impresario -- Coda: Revolution and terrorism in contemporary Italy Summary One of the most controversial questions in Italy today concerns the origins of the political terror that ravaged the country from 1969 to 1984, when the Red Brigades, a Marxist revolutionary organization, intimidated, maimed, and murdered on a wide scale. In this timely study of the ways in which an ideology of terror becomes rooted in society, Richard Drake explains the historical character of the revolutionary tradition to which so many ordinary Italians professed allegiance, examining its origins and internal tensions, the men who shaped it, and its impact and legacy in Italy. He illuminates the defining figures who grounded the revolutionary tradition, including Carlo Cafiero, Antonio Labriola, Benito Mussolini, and Antonio Gramsci, and explores the connections between the social disasters of Italy, particularly in the south, and the country's intellectual politics; the brand of "anarchist communism" that surfaced; and the role of violence in the ideology. Though arising from a legitimate sense of moral outrage at desperate conditions, the ideology failed to find the political institutions and ethical values that would end inequalities created by capitalism. In a chilling coda, Drake recounts the recent murders of the economists Massimo D'Antona and Marco Biagi by the new Red Brigades, whose Internet justification for the killings is steeped in the Marxist revolutionary tradition Bibliography Includes bibliographical references and index Notes English Print version record Subject Brigate rosse. SUBJECT Brigate rosse fast Subject Socialism -- Italy Communism -- Italy -- History POLITICAL SCIENCE -- Political Ideologies -- Communism & Socialism. HISTORY -- Europe -- Italy. Communism Politics and government Socialism SUBJECT Italy -- History -- 1945-1976. http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh85068984 Italy -- History -- 1976- http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh85068986 Italy -- Politics and government -- 1945-1976. http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh85069015 Italy -- Politics and government -- 19th century. http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh88007834 Italy -- Politics and government -- 20th century. http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh85069010 Subject Italy Genre/Form History Form Electronic book ISBN 9780674034327 0674034325

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