A different ‘Progressive Dilemma’: Marquand and Italy

David Marquand was a prominent figure of the British democratic left and a key protagonist in the rare club of European intellectuals of social democracy. Although much of his political career was closely tied to Europe or, as he preferred to call it, the ‘European project,’ none of his books or articles, including those discussing the secular decline of the public sphere and the rise of manipulative populism, such as The Decline of the Public (2004) or The End of the West (2011) – an elegant yet melancholy recounting of Europe’s historical trajectory – have been translated into French, Italian, or German. 

Why? In times still dominated by the cultural constraints of the Cold War, where political hybridization is met with scepticism, the answer is straightforward. Marquand’s perspective was deeply rooted in the Anglo-American world, therefore perceived as ‘external’; he observed the complex interplay between social justice, progress, and liberty through a distinctly British lens, therefore measured as culturally ‘untranslatable’. Moreover, his pragmatic perspective to interpreting the historical transformation of the political sphere as well as his major theoretical and practical contributions to social democracy were intricately intertwined with the idiosyncrasies of English Labourism. 

Yet, his vast intellectual curiosity, passion for politics of renewal and progressivism, commitment to translate ethical socialism and progressive liberalism into an inclusive political perspective, and his enduring interest in Europe – both as an idea and a new political system that transcends its history – make him probably one of the foremost European public intellectuals.

It was the amalgamation of all these appetites that led him to Italy. After resigning as chief adviser to Roy Jenkins’ European Commission and returning to academic life in the UK, Marquand forged a long-lasting, though little known, relationship with the University of Bologna and the Bolognese think tank, Il Mulino. His first invitation to Italy came from the University of San Marino – a city-state near Bologna – in April of 1980, where he discussed his biography of Ramsay MacDonald. For the rest of his career, however, Bologna remained the focal point of his contributions to the Italian political-intellectual debate. 

In June 2002, the University of Bologna conferred upon him a Laurea honoris causa in Political Sciences. It was a celebration of Europe’s political ideas and historical significance, highlighting the UK’s pivotal role in both, and recognizing Marquand as one of its most vibrant protagonists. During the same ceremony, the former French president Jacques Delors received the Sigillum Magnum, the highest honours conferred by the university.

The year before, in June 2001, with Jean-Claude Casanova, Pierre Rosanvallon and Romano Prodi, Marquand was one of the many international speakers that participated at the conference celebrating the 50 years of production of the think tank and publisher Il Mulino. His intervention was dedicated to the construction of a European cultural public space – a bad recording can be found on the Radio Radicale website. 

It is rare however to find any direct links, quotes, or analyses of Italy or Italian politics and history in Marquand’s extensive body of work. Interestingly, he did have some interactions with the future President of the Republic, Giorgio Napolitano, who was then a Member of the European Parliament and a pragmatic reformist within the Italian Communist Party. He mentioned it in one of the several times I interviewed him during my PhD research, both in Bologna and Oxford, while he served as Principal of Mansfield College. 

Marquand wasn’t an expert in Italian or French politics, and from what I recall, he did not indulge in romanticizing the political struggles of European nations through a sort of ‘Orientalistic gaze’ – a tendency often evident in the English approach to Italy’s history, for instance. Nor did he pontificate on the peculiarities of British history. Because of this, I believe that once his papers and library are opened to researchers, we will find materials linking him not only to Italy, France, and Eastern Europe. I look forward to the connections that this research will undoubtedly reveal.

The association with Il Mulino is fascinating. Situated in the heart of the Communist Italian Red Belt and amidst the cultural tensions of the Cold War, Il Mulino was established in the early 1950s by a group of young intellectuals first as a journal which developed to a research centre and publisher. These thinkers aimed to move beyond the sterile ideological confrontations, seeking to foster political collaboration across what they saw as Italy’s diverse traditions of reformism. This tradition also included the pragmatic ‘reformist’ approach of the Communist Party, notably exemplified in the local councils of Bologna and the other cities of the so-called ‘Emilia model.’

The inclusion of the communists in the project – albeit a very particular kind of Euro-communists – in an era when the terms ‘social democracy’ and ‘reformism’ were often perceived derogatorily within the Italian political discourse still dominated by the interwar years’ divisions, made the mission of Il Mulino distinctly ‘anti-conformist.’ This is something Marquand certainly appreciated. Indeed, if we replace ‘ideological confrontation’ with ‘realignment of the Left,’ and view the communist reformists as akin to Neil Kinnock’s modernising effort in the Labour Party, then what was unfolding in Bologna could be seen as an Italian version of the ‘progressive dilemma.’

For Italian progressives, the concept of reforms and social democracy carries significantly historical diverse meanings. Marquand viewed reforms and social democracy as a dynamic process of ideas and practices, where the object and subject of political action are intertwined. In Italy’s still charged political-cultural landscape, reformism not only represents an identitarian stance but also embodies a deep ideological character. For this reason, Marquand’s books should be translated and widely circulated not only in Italian but also throughout Europe.

Marzia Maccaferri is a political historian at Queen Mary University of London.