Harry E. Vanden’s volume on José Carlos Mariátegui’s thought and politics is a well-researched addition to the recent scholarship in English on the Peruvian amauta. Mariateguismo is flourishing as never before on the Peruvian political scene, and Vanden’s book contributes to a more precise understanding of the comprehensiveness and complexities of Mariátegui’s thought and praxis.
Vanden presents a detailed and copiously footnoted examination of Mariátegui’s writings and political activities. He sets out to accomplish three objectives. “[F]irst, to establish Mariátegui’s place in Latin American and Third World Marxism; second, to elucidate the ways in which Marxism and national conditions can interact creatively to produce innovative ideology and analysis; and third, to provide a case study of how truly independent revolutionary socialism developed in Latin America” (p. 3).
Although the narrative does not seem to flow as easily as it does in other recent works on Mariátegui, the book is important since it provides a descriptive analysis of Mariátegui’s famous, as well as lesser-known, writings, and places them within the perspective of a flexible and dynamic Latin American Marxism. Vanden not only achieves his objectives, he also breaks new ground in analyzing Mariátegui’s view of imperialism. In addition, he emphasizes the influence of Lenin, Manuel González Prada, Antonio Gramsci, Georges Sorel, and many other European thinkers on Mariátegui’s eclectic brand of Marxism.
Just as many on the political left and within intellectual circles in Latin America today are rediscovering Mariátegui, Vanden helps the reader to discern the wealth of revolutionary thought and praxis in Mariátegui’s writings, particularly in the more obscure ones. The last decade or so has witnessed the growth and importance of independent Marxist movements. And, as Vanden suggests, “Today, as growing numbers of Latin Americans identify with nationalist movements in the Third World and seek their own brand of socialism, Mariátegui’s insights become all the more important” (pp. 111-112). Thus, Vanden’s study is a book that would benefit the serious student of Latin American politics and development, particularly one interested in Marxism and leftist revolutionary or reform movements.
