ABSTRACT
The following text focuses on issues in Bahro's book that have a universal significance extending beyond his analysis of the GDR. This means that concepts articulated by him, which in his framework (that of "actually existing socialism") could not be further developed, can be shown to have relevance to late capitalism as well. The second part of this essay is my contribution to an analysis of those tendencies in late capitalism which correspond to the tendencies noted by Bahro in protosocialism. His book is not merely a critique of "actually existing socialism," it is at the same time a Marxist analysis of the transition period to integral socialism. It is the most important contribution to Marxist theory and practice to appear in several decades.
