Abstract

In this collection of essays, Richard Lichtman critically analyzes and applies Marx's theory of ideology to a range of philosophical, social, political and cultural issues. Tracing the changes in Marx's theory from an early «camera obscura» view to a later «constituitive» position, Lichtman shows how the mature theory can be used to understand the function of liberal political theory, equal protection and reverse discrimination, social theory, and finally, in a concluding essay, the nature of contemporary welfare capitalism and a socialist alternative.