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The Young Macpherson on the Transition into Socialism and the Rise of Fascism

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 January 2018

Karl Dahlquist
Karl Dahlquist*
Affiliation:
York University
*
Department of Political Science, York University, Ross Building, 4700 Keele St., Toronto ON, M3J 1P3, email: karld@yorku.ca
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Abstract

Given the renewed interest in C. B. Macpherson's political theory in a time of late neo-liberalism, the aim of this article is to complement existing scholarship with a detailed account of his early thought on the transition into socialism. Against the prevailing view, I suggest that the young Macpherson outlined a theory of transition, on which the actualization of his democratic vision depended. I trace how he investigated the nature of the state in the 1930s and early 1940s and asked whether a socialist movement could gain control of state institutions and shape their policies to establish an economic democracy that could serve as a defence against fascism. As a democratic socialist, he agonized over the idea that a forcible revolution and unconstitutional measures were likely required to establish socialism. To paint my intellectual portrait, I make use of archival material from the time that has yet to be commented on.

Résumé

Vu l'intérêt renouvelé pour la théorie politique de C.B. Macpherson à l’âge du néolibéralisme tardif, cet article a pour but de compléter la littérature existante par un compte rendu circonstancié des origines de sa pensée sur la transition vers le socialisme. Contre l'opinion qui prévaut, je suggère que le jeune Macpherson a exposé une théorie de la transition dont dépendait l'actualisation de sa vision démocratique. Je montre par quelles voies il a exploré la nature de l’État dans les années 1930 et au début des années 1940 en s'interrogeant si un mouvement socialiste aurait pu prendre le contrôle des institutions étatiques et façonner leurs politiques afin d’établir une démocratie économique susceptible de s’ériger en rempart contre le fascisme. En tant que socialiste démocratique, il était déchiré à l'idée qu'une révolution imposée par la force et des mesures inconstitutionnelles s'avéraient probablement nécessaires afin d'instaurer le socialisme. Pour tracer mon portrait intellectuel, je me suis fondé sur des documents d'archives remontant à une époque qui n'a jamais encore fait l'objet de commentaires.

Type
Research Article/Étude originale
Information
Canadian Journal of Political Science/Revue canadienne de science politique , Volume 51 , Issue 2 , June 2018 , pp. 405 - 424
Copyright
Copyright © Canadian Political Science Association (l'Association canadienne de science politique) and/et la Société québécoise de science politique 2018 

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Footnotes

I would like to thank Olena Lyubchenko, Stephen Newman, Brenda McComb, Michael J. Sullivan, Donya Ziaee, James Laxer, Katherine Pendakis, Kanishka Goonewardena, Tania Espinoza, Axel Andersson, Kiran Banjeree, Ingar Solty, Edward Andrew and the three anonymous reviewers for their comments on the paper, and the archivists at the Special Collections, University of Toronto Archives (UTARMS), John P. Robarts Research Library, especially Harold Averill, for their help with the archival material.

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