[CFP] Conference 2020 – Marxist Political Economy Working Group

The Marxist Political Economy Working Group of IIPPE would like to invite paper proposals for the 2020 IIPPE conference to be held in Ferrara, Italy, September 9-11, 2020. We also welcome proposals for panels of specific topics which may be composed of 4-5 papers.

The Marxist Political Economy Working Group of IIPPE

The Marxist Political Economy Working Group aims to promote Marxist political economy, which is one of the tenets of IIPPE. Marxist political economy encompasses many diverse themes including, but not limited to, value theory, crisis theory, Marx’s method, and so on. Across these, value theory is taken as the starting point and the basis of other more complex analyses. However, this does not mean that value theory should stand on its own but it should be validated through the course of its application and development.

In relation to other IIPPE working groups which are not necessarily based on Marxian theories, the Marxist Political Economy Working Group acts as a horizontal group, informing and drawing upon the activities of other working groups by offering its own perspectives on specific topics such as privatization and neo-liberalism. We believe that value analysis provides integrity and analytical power to more complex Marxian analyses, and gives them the potential to explain systemic features of capitalism that other schools of thought have difficulty in addressing satisfactorily, especially in relation to broad historical developments in the economy and in society more generally.

This means that the Marxist Political Economy Working Group will not just focus on value theory as such but will also engage with other working groups in pursuit of the refinement and application of value theory. In addition, study of Marx’s intellectual development (e.g. the distinction between Young Marx and Mature Marx, development of the concept of world market, etc) is well-established, and will fall within the compass of the Working Group.

Whilst debate over Marx’s own political economy as theory remains imperative, the Working Group is keen to avoid continuing sterile and academic controversy at the expense of more constructive engagement across theoretical, empirical and practical issues. The Working Group will put more emphasis on the positive case for value theory, and Marxist political economy more broadly, rather than seeking to defend the theory against the mountains of criticism to which it has been subject.

Call for papers/panels for the 2020 IIPPE conference

Whilst Marxist political economy has played a crucial role in offering ways to critically understand contemporary capitalism as well as developing its own thematic areas across the social sciences, it is true that such power and intellectual command of Marxist political economy has significantly diminished under neoliberalism. This is why the coming IIPPE conference is expected to be a venue for reestablishing as well as deepening the analytical and critical capabilities of Marxist political economy in the face of the profound transformations within our societies and economies.

No particular topic is preferred. We welcome any single paper proposals and panel proposals that you think might fall within the bounds of Marxist political economy.

• You are expected to submit a proposal by filling in the electronic form.
• Proposals should be no more than 1200 characters.
• In case of a panel proposal, all the proposals for individual papers within the panel should also be submitted.
• The deadline for submission is March 15, 2020. You can also find out other important dates in the electronic form linked above.
  If you have any questions, please contact the Marxist Political Economy Working Group coordinators, Gong Hoe Gimm (ghgimm@gmail.com) and Heesang Jeon (hidarang@gmail.com).