Utopian rescue: the transit of Sánchez Vázquez from Marxism as an overcoming of utopia to Marxism as a strand of utopianism

Abstract

This article addresses the modification of the position of the Spanish-Mexican Marxist philosopher Adolfo Sánchez Vázquez regarding the concept of “utopia”, from a pejorative interpretation of it (in tune with the Marxist mainstream) to a rehabilitative rereading rehearsed from the end of the 1980s, which implies a reassessment of the links between utopia and Marxism. This evolution of his thought before the concept of "utopia" evidences a more general revision of his interpretation of Marxism, particularly regarding to the relationship between its scientific-explanatory and justificative-evaluative components, where this last dimension acquires an increasing relevance in detriment of the first. Thus, the evolution of Sánchez Vázquez's thought is a clear evidence of the “normative turn” that Marxism suffered in recent decades, manifested in different thinkers from diverse geographies and political and academic backgrounds.