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September15,1985

THEPROPHETICSHOESALESMAN
ByLewisCoserLewisCoser,whoteachessociologyattheStateUniversityofNewYorkatStonyBrook,istheauthorof''RefugeeScholarsin
America.''

THEBUREAUCRATIZATIONOFTHEWORLDTheFirstEnglishEditionoftheUndergroundMarxist
ClassicThatAnalyzedClassExploitationintheUSSR.ByBrunoRizzi.Translatedandwithan
introductionbyAdamWestoby.111pp.NewYork:TheFreePress.$16.95.
THEhistoryofideassometimesfollowssurprisingpathways.BrunoRizzi's''Bureaucratizationofthe
World''hashadaconsiderableundergroundimpactandreputationinthiscountryaswellasEuropefor
nearly50years,eventhoughfewwhohavepaidattentiontoithavehadthechancetoreadit.Rizzihad
aFrenchversionpublishedathisexpenseinParisin1939andplannedtosendcopiestoHitler,Stalin,
MussoliniandTrotsky.Wedonotknowwhethertheothersreceivedthebook,butTrotskydevotedseveral
majorcriticalarticlestoit.
DuringWorldWarIIandafter,anumberofhisdisciplesoradmirersweremovedtograpplewiththe
book'smajorthemes,eventhoughtheyknewthemonlyfromTrotsky'ssummary.Itbecameapotent
sourceofdiscussionontheradicalleftaswellasamongacademicsconcernedwithMarxistthoughtand
thecharacteroftheSovietUnion.JamesBurnham,inhisverysuccessfulbook''TheManagerial
Revolution:WhatIsHappeningintheWorld''(1941),wasclearlyinfluencedbyRizzi,eventhoughit
seemshehadnotseenacopyofthebookwhenhewrotehisown.Morerecently,sociologistssuchas
DanielBellandAlvinW.Gouldnerhavebeeninfluencedbyitsthesis.
Formanyyears,though,fewpeopleinAmericahadanyinformationaboutRizzi,whowasgenerally
knownonlybyhisnomdeplume,BrunoR.InaninformativeandscholarlyintroductiontothisEnglish
translationofthefirstpartofRizzi'sbook,AdamWestoby,aseniorlecturerattheOpenUniversity's
SchoolofEducationinEngland,demystifiestheworkandexplainsthecircumstancesofitspublication.
Bornin1901,BrunoRizziwasalargelyselfeducatedpoliticalactivistwhobecameamemberofthe
ItalianCommunistPartyin1921.Heleftitafewyearslater,though,becausehefoundtheComintern
orthodoxyofthepartyintellectuallysuffocating.Thereafterheconsideredhimselfanindependentradical
withnoorganizationaltiestotheofficialCommunistPartyorMarxistsplintergroups.Hemadehisliving
asatravelingshoesalesmaninbothItalyandFrance.
Rizzi'spoliticswerepeculiar.WhileinmostofhiswritingsheappearstobelongtotheantiStalinistleft,
therearealsomajorpassagesinwhichheengagesinviciousantiSemitictirades.Andeventhoughhe
brokewithLeninistorthodoxyintheearly1920's,itseemshewasstillpartlyloyaltotheSovietUnion
untilthemid30's.Atthesametime,hehadcontactswiththeItalianandFrenchoppositiontoStalin
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amongtheTrotskyistsandothergroups.Manypeopleapparentlyfoundhimsuspiciousrumorhadithe
wasaFascistspy,partlybecausehemovedeasilybackandforthbetweenFascistItalyandFrance.He
certainlyhadashadowycareer,ratherlikethatofaConradcharacter.
Afterthewar,RizzireturnedtoItaly,wherehebecameamajorshoemanufacturer.Hediedin1977,just
beforetherediscoveryofhisbookthere.Inthelastfewyears,theItalianpresshashailedthe''Ignored
Prophet,''andthefirstcommercialeditionofhisworkhasappearedwithanintroductionbyBettino
Craxi,thepresidentoftheSocialistPartyandthecurrentPrimeMinisterofItaly.Therehavealsobeen
newSpanishandFrencheditionsofthework.
Mr.Westobyhastranslatedthefirstofthebook'sthreesections,''TheUSSR:BureaucraticCollectivism.''
Thesecond,''TheTotalitarianState,''wasnotincludedinthe1939editionitcoveredtotalitarianismand
ItalianFascism.Thethird,''QuoVadis,America?,''examinedwhatRizzisawastheimplicit
totalitarianismofAmericansocialprogramsinthe30's.Butitisclearthefirstsectionhadthemost
significanceforreaderswhenthebookappeared.
Trotskyandhisfollowersinthe30'sclungtothenotionthat,givenitsnationalizationofthemeansof
production,theSovietUnionwasstillaprogressivesocialsystem,eventhoughithaddegeneratedand
theworkingclasshadlostpoliticalpower.Trotskystillbelievedthatifasocietywasnotcapitalist,itmust
necessarilybesocialist,sincehecouldnotconceiveofsocietiesthatwereneitheronenortheother.
RizzirejectedthisdichotomyandassertedthattheSovietUnionhaddevelopedintoahithertounknown
typeofsociety,neithercapitalistnorsocialist,runbyabureaucraticclassthatdominatedthestate
apparatusand''owned''themajormeansofproduction.Thisnewsocialformation,whichhecalled
bureaucraticcollectivism,couldnolongerbeunderstoodintermsoftraditionalMarxistcategories.What
ismore,heargued,NaziGermanyandFascistItalydisplayedsocioeconomiccharacteristicsthat
resembledtheSovietUnion's,andchancesweretherestofEuropewouldevolveinthesamedirection.R
IZZI'Sworkonlysketchedhisthesisinbroadstrokes.HeprovidednodetailedanalysisoftheSoviet
Union,leavingthattospecialists,butratherintendedtomakeaconceptualbreakthrough.Theimpactof
hisbook,especiallyamongMarxists,becomesunderstandableifonerealizesheattackedtheconceptual
coreofMarxistthoughttheconvictionthatthefuturebelongedtothe''universalclass,''theproletariat.
Rizziclaimedthebureaucratsratherthantheworkerswouldinherittheearth.
ItstandstoreasonthatmanyMarxistorsemiMarxistintellectualswhohadbeendeeplyperturbedby
thevictoryofNazismandFascismandthehorrorsofStalin'sregimewerefascinatedbyhismessage,as
somewhatlatertheywerearousedbyJamesBurnhamandthenbyMilovanDjilas'sbook''TheNewClass:
AnAnalysisoftheCommunistSystem''(1957).Ifbureaucratsratherthantheproletariatweregoingto
runtheworld,thelabormovementwithwhichradicalintellectualsidentifiedcouldatbestwagea
defensivebattle.EvenTrotsky,despitehisusualoptimism,wasledbyRizzi'swritingsatleasttoenvisagea
worldwidedefeatofthelabormovement,thoughheclungtotheendtohisbeliefthiswouldnothappen
andthewarwouldleadtothecollapseofcapitalismandtheriseofrevolutionaryandproletarianSoviet
stylesocieties.
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