Socialist Noirvember
Hank Kennedy discusses film noir’s relationship to the 1940s Hollywood Left and highlights two films of interest for socialist cinephiles. November is often known by …
culture
Not Very Quiet On The Western Front
Francis Babeuf reviews director Edward Berger’s new Netflix-produced screen adaptation of Erich Maria Remarque’s 1928 anti-war novel ‘All Quiet On The Western Front,’ arguing that …
Letter: Our Cultural Malaise
I had ample time during the holidays to contemplate the points made by comrade Noakes in reply to both myself and comrade Manos on the …
From Champion of the Oppressed to Truth, Justice, and the American Way: Who Took the Socialism Out of Superman?
Hank Kennedy traces the ideological history of Superman, arguing that the populism of the character’s early iterations would eventually be shed as a result of …
The Horizons of Emancipatory Political Theater: Boal’s Theater of the Oppressed in Light of Brecht and Rancière
Renato Flores explores the development and impact of Brazilian dramaturg Augusto Boal’s influential ‘Theatre of the Oppressed,’ historically contextualizing Boal’s idiosyncratic approach to theater as …
Revolutionary Poems in Reactionary Times: Reflections on the Work of Matt Sedillo
Joseph G. Ramsey reviews two of Chicano poet Matt Sedillo’s recent works, Mowing Leaves of Grass (2019) and City on the Second Floor (2022). Matt …
Letter: An Art of Our Own
Just over a week ago, Cosmonaut published a piece by a comrade Christian Noakes, in which the comrade attempted to critique what they believe to …
The Foner Case: Thoughts in Response to the New Edition of ‘The Case of Joe Hill’
Jackson Albert Mann responds to International Publishers’ new 2022 edition of Philip S. Foner’s classic work, ‘The Case of Joe Hill.’ Introduction Many on the …
The Comics vs. the Communists: The Left During the Comic Book Scare
Hank Kennedy presents and assesses the many reactions to comic books by different strata of the socialist Left during the Comic Book Scare of the …
Reintroducing John Dos Passos
Lawrence Parker introduces a 1938 New Masses article by Granville Hicks on US writer John Dos Passos and argues that the latter’s work is ripe …
Boldly Going Where We’ve Already Been: An Analysis of Voyagers
Stephen Lee Naish reviews Neil Burger’s Voyagers and finds an impoverished ruling class vision of space travel where reaching for the stars means more of …
What Remains
Taylor Thornburg offers a communist analysis of the internet and explores its different ideological uses. “What do people get wrong about drawing Pepe?” an interviewer …
The Platform is the Message
Amelia Davenport and Renato Flores argue that social media cannot be ignored despite its negative effects on modern culture. Instead, the left needs its own …
Lenin and Art by Lunacharsky
In honor of Lenin on the anniversary of his death, we publish this short essay by Lunacharsky on Lenin’s views regarding art. This text was …