Scott Meikle, Essentialism in the Thought of Karl Marx

Scott Meikle, Essentialism in the Thought of Karl Marx

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Meikle emphasizes the roots of Marx's dialectical method in Aristotelian essentialism and organicism. This is shown to constitute a challenge to liberal scholars to rethink their methodological premises. Though many liberals claim Aristotle as their intellectual forebear, they haue not grasped the Aristotelian propensity for holistic analysis of social phenomena—as Marx did. In order to reclaim Aristotle's legacy, liberals must reformulate their economic and political ideas within a broader context that takes account of historical, cultural and socio‐psy‐chological factors.