The Individual Self in Karl Marx and the Limits of Autobiography

Abstract

Karl Marx’s social theory was often assessed as objectivist and deterministic, incompatible with the individuality and self-reflection characteristic of the autobiographical. The scarce autobiographical pages by Marx remains marginal to the narrative of the self. The argument here developed suggests that Marx’s mature theory provides a contradictory explanation of the formation of individuality, whose premise is the separation of the community. This separation is ambiguous: it creates figures like those of the citizen and the formally free individual, whose subjective folds exceed the mechanical reproduction of the capitalist social form. The conclusion proposes a reflection on the possible contribution and limitations of Marxist critical theory for a balanced analysis of contemporary autobiographical practices.