"ON NEO-LIBERALISM. CONCERNING THE BOOK
BY P. NOVGORODTSEV 'CRISIS OF MODERN LEGAL CONSCIOUSNESS'"

[1911, not later than April]

The article, in my view, must be reworked in the following direction:

1) One must present to the reader more precisely and concretely what is the matter, what Novgorodtsev is talking about. (One cannot assume this is known.)

2) One must critique Novgorodtsev more thoroughly and in detail—modern liberalism—the theory of popular sovereignty (i.e., its revolutionary significance in history; the emasculation of this significance by professors; the reactionary character of its renunciation now).

3) Reduce sharply the general-theoretical section on Marxism and materialism versus idealism.

4) Work on it literarily (the article is in places a direct rough draft, sketches, notes).

5) Consider the dimensions. The individual sections of the article are extremely disproportionate. Neither quite an article nor quite a book.

For *Mysl'* a maximum of 2 articles of 10—12 printed pages each.

For a book—it is necessary to explain all the remaining sections in as much detail as historical materialism.