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Here is the first scholarly study of the life and thought of Benoît Malon (1841-1893), the most persuasive and visible spokesman for reformist socialism during the early years of the French Third Republic. Active in the generation of the French Left that came of age under the Second Empire, Malon was a prominent member of the First International in Paris and later joined the Paris Commune. As a result, he was forced into exile in Switzerland and Italy during the 1870s, where he became entangled in the struggles within the International. Malon attempted to steer a course between Marxist authoritarianism and anarchist utopianism, which he continued on his return to France in 1880. Vincent analyzes Malon's role as activist, editor, and author, arguing that Malon drew on a strong tradition of left-wing French republicanism. In his mature works, Malon articulated a socialism that emphasized broad moral and socioeconomic reform and advocated parliamentary rule as the appropriate source of national sovereignty. In helping the republican socialist Left shed its revolutionary associations, he pointed the way for later reformist socialists from Jean Jaurès to François Mitterrand

Benoit Malon (1841-1893) was the most persuasive and visible spokesman for reformist socialism during the early years of the Third Republic. K. Steven Vincent offers here the first scholarly study of the impact of Malon's life and thought on the development of French socialism. Malon was of the generation of the French Left that came of age under the Second Empire. A prominent member of the First International in Paris, he was swept up in the struggle to defend Paris against the Prussians in 1870 and the Versaillais in 1871. Because of his participation in the Paris Commune, Malon was forced to spend the 1870s in exile in Switzerland and Italy, where he became entangled in the struggles within the International. He opposed the London General Council controlled by Marx and joined the Jura Federation. But Malon also came to oppose the anarchist strategy of Bakunin's Italian followers supported by the Federation, developing instead an "experimental" position that called for limited political action. Upon his return to France in 1880, Malon continued to steer a course between Marxist authoritarianism and anarchist utopianism. Vincent analyzes Malon's role as activist, editor, and author, contrasting his thought with that of prominent French Marxists such as Paul Lafargue and arguing that Malon drew on a strong tradition of left-wing French republicanism. In his mature works, Malon articulated a socialism that emphasized broad moral and socioeconomic reform and advocated parliamentary deliberation as the appropriate locus for the exercise of political sovereignty. In helping the republican socialist Left shed its revolutionary associations, he pointed the way for later reformist socialists from Jean Jaures to Francois Mitterand, while his defense of "integral socialism" heralds the emergence of modern reformist socialism in France