Beyond Poulantzas

pp. 336-363

in: Bob Jessop, Nicos Poulantzas, Basingstoke, Palgrave Macmillan, 1985

Abstract

We have now completed our detailed review of Poulantzas's work and reconsidered its theoretical and political sources. It is time to draw some general conclusions and to look beyond Poulantzas's own studies to the problems he left unsolved. This concluding chapter presents a brief appreciation of Poulantzas's self-assessment as a Marxist theorist and considers the principal merits and demerits of his contribution to the analysis of the state. It then outlines Poulantzas's own research agenda for future work on the state and society and assesses its implications for the future direction of his work. It also suggests an alternative approach to developing this work and consolidating his contributions. It is now some five years since his death and sufficient time has passed to place Poulantzas in perspective.