Reinterpreting Marx in Nigeria

The intellectual turn towards The Postmodern Marx, most notably advanced by political theorist and historian of political thought, Terrell Carver, represents a significant shift in the study of Marxist thought. Rather than viewing Marx as a deterministic thinker concerned solely with economic laws and historical inevitability, Carver emphasizes the interpretive, textual, and discursive nature of Marx’s writings. This approach aligns with postmodern theory, which challenges fixed meanings, essential categories, and universal explanations. Instead, it foregrounds ambiguity, context, and the constructed nature of political and social identities.

In the Nigerian context, this re-reading of Marx is not only timely but essential. Traditional Marxist models—rooted in binaries such as bourgeoisie and proletariat—struggle to account for the country’s complex socio-political fabric. Since independence, Nigerian society has been shaped by colonial legacies, ethnic federalism, military authoritarianism, and clientelist democracy. Power and inequality in Nigeria are mediated not only through economic class but also through ethnicity, regionalism, religion, and gender. A rigid, economistic reading of Marxism fails to grasp this intricate web of influence.

The Postmodern Marx enables Nigerian political scientists and historians to critically examine how elite power is sustained through language, identity, and symbolic discourse. Concepts such as "federal character," "zoning," and "resource control" are not merely policy tools but ideological constructs that reproduce dominance and maintain elite consensus. This postmodern lens allows for a deconstruction of political narratives that mask exploitation under the guise of representation and national unity.

Moreover, the postmodern approach encourages a reassessment of “class” in Nigeria. The informal sector, religious institutions, traditional rulers, and non-state actors all complicate the classical proletariat-bourgeoisie division. A market trader in Lagos, a herder in Yobe, and a civil servant in Anambra occupy different positions of precarity that cannot be captured within a monolithic class analysis. Postmodern Marx provides a framework for understanding how these groups navigate structural marginalization while simultaneously being shaped by culturally embedded forms of power.

The Postmodern Marx offers a critical tool for Nigerian scholars seeking to move beyond doctrinaire Marxism. It opens space for a richer, context-sensitive analysis of power, identity, and ideology in Nigeria’s fractured postcolonial landscape. Rather than discard Marxism, it invites us to reread it—carefully, critically, and creatively—within the specific historical and cultural conditions that define the Nigerian experience.