Course Title：西方视角下的马克思主义政治经济学

This course examines selected aspects of Marxist political economy as it has been understood and interpreted in the West from the time of Karl Marx until today. Throughout the course, the history and practices of Marxism are reviewed in detail, highlighting the strengths, achievements, weaknesses and political reach of Western Marxism. The course focuses on two aspects of Marxism in detail: economics and politics. On the economics side, the course stresses Marx’s theory of value. On the politics side, it focuses on the notions of class, mode of production and the state. Throughout the course, basic theory is combined with applications and historical experiences, and extensive readings of the key contributions to the literature. The main objectives of this course are to: • Introduce students to Marxist political economy. • Compare the Marxist approach with alternative theoretical perspectives on capitalism, its drivers, and its contradictions. • Compare different approaches to key concepts in Marxian political economy. • Examine critically the Marxist contributions to the study of development and contemporary capitalism. At the end of this course, students will be able to: • Identify and understand the most important concepts, debates and problems in Western Marxist political economy. • Critically interpret economic issues, problems and debates in the light of Marxist methods, concepts and contributions. • Apply more developed analytical and critical skills through the ideas discussed in the lectures and through individual research. • Enhance their communication and critical thinking skills through seminar debate and discussion.