Reading Poulantzas: elementary concepts of political power and social classes

Abstract

The book Ler Poulantzas: conceitos elementares de Poder político e classes sociais, written by Danilo Enrico Martuscelli and Leonardo Granato and published by Lutas Anticapital, presents a systematic and theoretically rigorous, that is both didactic and introductory, of Nicos Poulantzas’s thought, offering a consistent framework for understanding his theory of the state, social classes, and political power under capitalism. Across three interconnected chapters, the book engages with both the Marxist tradition and contemporary interpretations, particularly those developed by the Poulantzasian School of Campinas. Notably, the book concludes with a chronology of the author’s life and work, as well as translations of Nicos Poulantzas’s books, articles, and interviews published in Portuguese, making it a reference work for research on the author.