Moscow Dialogues: Discussions on Red philosophy.

By Julius F Hecker

Printed: 1933

Publisher: Chapman & Hall. London

Dimensions 15 × 22 × 3 cm
Language

Language: English

Size (cminches): 15 x 22 x 3

£42.00
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Description

Black cloth binding with green title on the spine and front board. Rebacked spine.

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Please view our photographs.“Moscow Dialogues: Discussions on Red Philosophy” by Julius F. Hecker, Ph.D., published in 1933 by Chapman & Hall, is a notable intellectual work providing a 1930s Western audience with an analysis of Soviet Marxist-Leninist philosophy. The book is structured as a series of Socratic-style dialogues, designed to make complex dialectical materialism accessible to English-speaking readers. It features an insightful foreword by the prominent British philosopher John Macmurray.

Book & Edition Overview

  • Context: Published during the interwar period, a time of significant global interest and debate surrounding the socio-political developments in the Soviet Union.
  • Market Status: Original 1933 copies in Good condition are relatively scarce. They primarily appeal to academic collectors, historians of Marxist thought, and collectors of early 20th-century political philosophy.

Physical & Bibliographic Specifications

Feature Details
Author Julius Friedrich Hecker, Ph.D.
Publisher Chapman & Hall, London
Publication Year 1933
Format Hardcover (Octavo format, approx. 6″ x 8.8″ x 1.2″)
Pagination xvi + 285 pages
Original Price 8s. 6d. (at time of launch)


Philosophy: Volume 9 – | Cambridge Core
Select Moscow Dialogues: Discussions on Red Philosophy. By Julius Hecker, Ph.D. (London: Chapman & Hall.1933. Pp. xvi + 285. Price…

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The 1933 edition of “Moscow Dialogues: Discussions on Red Philosophy” serves as a fascinating historical record of how early Soviet thought was presented to the West. The book is uniquely written as a Socratic dialogue between an American intellectual group visiting Russia and a fictional host named “Socratov” (a surrogate for a learned Soviet philosopher). This format allows the author to explain complex, dense ideology through a conversational, highly engaging debate. 

The text is structured into specific progressive discussions:

  • The Concept of Philosophy: It frames why the Bolsheviks viewed philosophy not as an abstract academic study, but as a direct guide to revolutionary action. 
  • The Roots of Marxism: It traces the evolutionary line from classic European philosophers (like Hegel and Feuerbach) into the dialectical materialism of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels.
  • The Shift to Leninism: It explains how Vladimir Lenin adapted classic Marxism specifically for the Russian social landscape, outlining the ideological underpinnings of the Bolshevik revolution.
  • Critiques and Defense: The dialogues explicitly debate Western doubts about individual liberty, state planning, and the aggressively anti-religious stance of early Soviet communism. 

Market Price Analysis: For an original copy in Good condition, values vary based on the specific market context, binding, and whether it retains the dust jacket:

Pricing Category Estimated Market Range Notes
Collector / First Edition Value £30 – £55 Applies to the original 1933 London (Chapman & Hall) or the 1934 first American printing. Excellent copies with intact dust jackets command the top end of this range.
Later / Cheap Editions £15 – £25 For subsequent 1934 or 1936 reprints (such as the “Cheap Edition” released by Chapman & Hall) in standard condition without a dust jacket.
Historical Value Originally 8s. 6d. At launch in 1933, the book was priced at 8 shillings and 6 pence.

Condition notes

Spine repaired

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