Reductionism

From MarxWiki

Reductionism, the `oversimplifying of something complex or the misguided belief that everything can be explained in simple terms,` is discussed by Antonio Gramsci in his Selections from the Prison Notebooks (Webster's Dictionary). He rejects the `economic and class reductionism` practiced in Marx and Engels initial theories of Marxism. As written by Roger Simon in his book, Gramsci's Political Thought: An Introduction, `Gramsci connects nationalism to internal colonialism, and proposes the concepts of hegemony, historical bloc, and organic intellectuals in relation to the concept of nation.`

Marxist theory has struggled with reductionism; theorists, such as Gramsci, often criticize theories, including those developed by Marx himself, for not taking in consideration alternate arguments and/or exploring all possible alternative avenues to reach a conclusion that is wholly formulated.