''The New Reasoner'' was a British journal of dissident

Communism Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a ...

published from 1957 to 1959 by

John Saville John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second ...

and

E.P. Thompson Edward Palmer Thompson (3 February 1924 – 28 August 1993) was an English historian, writer, socialist and peace campaigner. He is best known today for his historical work on the radical movements in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, in ...

. The publication is best remembered as an antecedent of the long running journal ''

New Left Review The ''New Left Review'' is a British bimonthly journal covering world politics, economy, and culture, which was established in 1960. History Background As part of the British "New Left" a number of new journals emerged to carry commentary on m ...

.''

''The Reasoner''

''The New Reasoner'' was preceded by a journal entitled ''The Reasoner'', first published in July 1956 by

and

. The editors proposed the use of the journal as a forum for the discussion of "questions of fundamental principle, aim, and strategy," critiquing Stalinism as well as the dogmatic politics of the Communist Party of Great Britain (CPGB). ''The Reasoner'' took its name from an early 19th-century publication which had attempted to renew and reinvigorate a flagging Jacobin Radicalism. Over its five months of existence, the journal angered many within the leadership of the CPGB. Thompson and Saville were ordered to cease publication of their dissident journal, an order they chose to defy. Because of their refusal, Thompson and Saville were suspended from the CPGB.

''The New Reasoner''

In 1957, following their resignation from the CPGB over its support of the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

's invasion of

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the ...

, Thompson and Saville began the publication of a new journal, named the ''New Reasoner'', with the purpose of contributing to "the re-discovery of our traditions, the affirmation of socialist values, and the undogmatic perception of social reality." The opening editorial was a reaffirmation of their commitment to the British Marxist and Communist tradition, despite their departure from the Party. They allied themselves with European workers who were fighting for "de-stalinisation" and called for the rebirth of principles within the movement. In 1960 the ''New Reasoner'' merged with the ''Universities and Left Review'' journal to become ''

''.

Footnotes

External links

Barry Amiel and Norman Melburn Trust website
All the issues of the journal are available in digital format copyright free (CC copyright). The site also includes an article on the journal's history by

Peter Worsley Peter Maurice Worsley (6 May 1924 – 15 March 2013) was a noted British sociologist and social anthropologist. He was a major figure in both anthropology and sociology, and is noted for introducing the term ''Third World'' into English. H ...

, assisted by

Dorothy Thompson (historian) Dorothy Katharine Gane Thompson (''née'' Towers; 30 October 1923 – 29 January 2011) was a social historian, a leading expert on the Chartist movement. She and her famous husband E. P. Thompson became well-known in left-wing intellectual ci ...

and Stuart Hall. {{British New Left Defunct political magazines published in the United Kingdom Magazines established in 1957 Magazines disestablished in 1960 Socialist magazines