We are republishing Leon Trotsky's article 'The Curve of Capitalist Development', written in April 1923, as a contribution to the understanding of the period we are going through, with its dialectical relationship between economic developments and politics. With the ideological offensive by the advocates of the New Economic Paradigm, who believe capitalism is experiencing a new period of upswing, it is important to understand the alternative scientific view based upon not only the boom and slump cycle of capitalism, but the curve of development through which the system is passing. Rather than a new upswing, capitalism is heading for a new slump and a downward curve of development similar to the interwar period. Trotsky's article allows us to understand the Marxist method in dealing with this phenomenon.

We also recommend the following texts as additional reading on the subject:

• Marxism in Our Time
  Leon Trotsky's introduction to the book "The Living Thoughts of Karl Marx" has long been out of print. The book itself, complied by Otto Ruhle in 1939, was an abridged version in Marx's own words of volume one of Capital. Trotsky's introduction took up the defence of Marxism, analysing the development of capitalism in the Twentieth century and showing the continuing relevance of Marx's writings and theories. It represents a brief, but brilliant exposition of Marxism. In order to bring Trotsky's defence of Marxism up to date, this pamphlet was published in 1994 with an introduction by Alan Woods and Ted Grant, which draws upon extensive contemporary material. In addition, we include a supplementary article by Trotsky entitled "Once Again on the 'Crisis of Marxism'".