num_pages: 224
description: The Left Review was the first -- and perhaps the most distinguished -- Marxist journal of cultural studies in the English language. In the five years of its existence (1934-39), the journal attracted an extraordinary roster of leading radical writers, poets and critics, amongst them Hugh MacDiarmid, Winifred Holtby, C. Day Lewis, Eric Gill, Lewis Grassic Gibbon and the Communist Party poet Edgell Rickword.This first major anthology of Left Review material highlights the importance of new developments in Marxist critical theory of the time. All the contributors viewed culture in the context of the momentous political developments of the day -- the rise of fascism, the Spanish Civil War, the Popular Front -- adopting a perspective in which culture was not only examined in subtle detail but seen as an active, liberating force for change. Whether discussing detective stories, Shakespeare, surrealism or H. G. Wells, the essays in this book demonstrate an extraordinary and timeless critical originality that is as relevant to readers today as it ever was.
language: English
title: Writing the Revolution: Cultural Criticism from Left Review
publisher: Pluto Press