Transitions to nowhere: Étienne Balibar, Erik Olin Wright, and the problem of revolutionary violence

Abstract

This paper studies the theory of revolutionary change in two authors inspired by different currents of Marxism. In the case of Étienne Balibar, his theory of violence and civility is analyzed, while in the case of Erik Olin Wright, his analysis of transitional depression is studied. The article shows how our two thinkers present a convergent theory of abandonment of the Leninist model of social change.