QUESTIONS ON ERIC OLIN WRIGHT, CLASSES

Please answer any five of the following questions.

1. What are Wright's critiques of Poulantzas' construction of classes? How does it implicitly lead to a different construction by himsself?
2. What is Wright's model of class determination? In particular, how does he handle the relations among class structure, class consciousness, and class formation?
3. It is important to note major differences between Wright's initial outline of classes in 1976-8, and in his 1985 book, What were the major shifts between these two different ways of depicting classes?
4. What were the three major criteria Wright used to define classes? How do these compare to Carchedi and Poulantzas? How do they change in Wright's revised model?
5. What are Wright's main classes and contradictory class locations? How do they change between the earlier and later Wright?
6. How does the role of the ideological in the definition of classes change from earlier to later Wright?
7. How does the revised Wright treat classes across modes of production (fedualism, capitalism, statism, socialism)? What assumptions and concepts are involved? What problems do you see in this?
8. What theoretical critiques would you make of Wright in terms of:
   • theoretical assumptions?
   • levels of abstraction?
   • marxism?
   • class?
   • state?
   • assets?
9. What methodological critiques would you make of Wright?
10. What ideological assumptions lie behind the revised Wright?
11. What role does 'game theory' play in Wright's conceputalization of classes?