Abstract
Development of his economic theory in Capital consumed the better part of Marx's life. Yet, paradoxically, throughout more than a century following Marx's passing, Marxism (the body of thought tracing its lineage to Marx), notwithstanding a fecund heterogeneity, is offered up as essentially a theory of history. Indeed, today, few dispute the view of historical materialism as the center-piece of Marxism, with political economy, portrayed at best as a sub-theory. Analysis in this paper turns upon the question of how what is here dubbed the retreat from the economic in Marxist theory is impelled by the sub-theory role political economy plays in support of historical materialism. The retreat is traced across the work of three prominent Marxist theoreticians-Karl Kautsky, Georg Lukacs and Louis Althusser-each widely accepted as representatives of epochs of Marxist thought. The article then introduces an alternative approach to the relationship between Marxian economics and historical materialism predicated upon a reconstruction of Marxism originating in Japan. It demonstrates how the Japanese Uno approach returns political economy to its rightful place within Marxist theory-effecting a return to Marx.
