A Truer Liberty: Simone Weil and Marxism.

Abstract

Simone Weil - philosopher, trade union militant, factory worker - developed a penetrating critique of Marxism and a powerful political philosophy which serves as an alternative both to liberalism and Marxism. In A Truer Liberty , Blum and Seidler show how Simone Weil's philosophy differed from Marxism: she sought to put political action on a firmly moral basis. Weil criticized Marxism for its confidence in progress and revolution and its attendant illusory belief that history is on the side of the proletariat. The authors relate Weil's work to influential trends in political philosophy today, from the 'analytic' Marxism of Gerald Cohen and others to the liberal tradition of Anglo-American political philosophy represented by Rawls, Dworkin, and others.