The debate on classes

By transporting the concept of capitalism from its production relations to property relations and by speaking of simple individuals instead of speaking of entrepreneurs, he moves the question of socialism from the domain of production into the domain of relations of fortune- that is, from the relation between capital and labour to the relation between poor and rich. (R. Luxemburg, Reform or Revolution, p. 65) IN RECENT years E.O. Wright has emerged as an influential sociologist of the left. In his most recent work, Classes, he undertakes a complete reformulation of his theory of social classes. In this process of reconceptualisation, Wright touches upon a number of issues which lie at the core of Marxist analysis. A review of Classes is thus an important occasion to clarify the issues and assess the consequences of choosing among the differ-ent, alternative, formulations of those issues. Thus, the import-Over the past decade the works of Erik Olin Wright have come to exercise an important influence on Marxist debates about the state and social class. Taking up his most recent book, Classes, Carchedi argues forcefully that Wright's fundamental project represents a revision of the fundamental conceptual framework developed by Marx, and a negation of the originality of the materialist analysis of social classes and class struggle