module 7 Marxism Disciplines in Social sciences

Module 7

1. Marxism Prepared by: Monica San Juan

2. Historical Development

3. Historical Development Begin in the 19 th century as a pragmatic view of history that offered the working classes of society an opportunity to change their world It offered humanity a social, political, economic, and cultural understanding of the nature of reality, society and the individual.

4. Karl Marx Root of Marxist literary theory Born in Tier, Germany in 1818 His writings became the basis of Marxism Approach. Died on 14 March 1883

5. Marx articulates his views on the nature of reality in his works.

6. The German Ideology (1845) Marx declares that “consciousness does not determine life: life determines consciousness.” Humans define themselves. He said that our ideas and concepts about ourselves fashioned in everyday discourse in the language of real life.

7. Dialectical Materialism Core belief of Marxism Marx believed that s ociety had progressed from one economic system to another As society progresses from a feudal system to a more market-based economy, the actual process from producing, distributing, and consuming goods becomes more complex People’s functions within the economic system become differentiated.

8. Two Economic means of production within a society Base Engenders and controls all human institutions and ideologies Superstructure All social and legal institutions, political and educational systems, religions, and art

9. Four historical periods (Marx)

10. The Communist Manifesto(1848) Proletariat class of society which does not have ownership of the means of production . Bourgeoisie wealthy class that rules society. -Marx and Engels further develop Marxism ideas.

11. The Communist Manifesto(1848) S tates that the history of all existing societies is the history of class struggle They declare that the capitalists, or the bourgeoisie, had successfully enslaved the working class, or the proletariat through economic policies and production of goods.

12. Das capital (1867) History became the basis for 20 th century Marxism, socialism, and communism History, an understanding of people and their actions and beliefs is determined by economic conditions. Marx maintains that an intricate web of social relationships emerges when any group of people engage in the production of goods.

13. Das capital (1867) The ideology of a society such as the beliefs, values and culture is determined by the upper class. The rich become richer, while the poor become poorer

14. Proponents and their contributions Russia and Marxism

15. Development G. K. Plehanov – Translated “The Communist Manifesto” Russia – first country to promote Marxist principles Leon Trotsky – became the founding father of Marxist literary criticism as he authored Literature and Revolution (1925)

16. Georg Lukacs Believed that a detailed analysis of symbols, images and other literary devices (formalism) would expose class conflict and expose the relationship between the superstructure and the base Reflectionism Approach to literary analysis declaring that texts directly reflect a society's consciousness Emphasizing negative effects of capitalism such as alienation

17. The Frankfurt School Neo-Marxist group devoted to developing western Marxist principles A text reveals a culture’s fragmentation and not its wholeness

18. Antonio Gramsci He said that there is a complex relationship between the base and the superstructure The bourgeoisie establish and maintain what he calls hegemony As sustainers of the economic base, the dominant class thus enjoys the prestige of the masses and controls the ideology that shapes individual consciousness Literature actually concerns itself with the bourgeoisie

19. Louis Althusser Production Theory The superstructure can and does influence the base Althusser believes that the prevailing ideology forms the attitudes of people in society through a process he calls interpellation or “hailing the subject.” The people’s worldview is thus craftily shaped by a complex network of messages sent to them through the elements contained in the superstructure, including the arts.

20. Marxist Theorists Today Fredric Jameson believes that the function of literary analysis is to uncover the political unconscious present in a text. He said that all critics must be aware of their own ideology when analyzing a text and must therefore possess dialectical self-awareness.

21. Marxist Theorists Today Terry Eagleton Believes that literature is neither a product of pure inspiration nor the product of the author's feelings. Literature is a product of an ideology. This ideology is a result of the social interactions that occur between people in definite times and locations. The critic’s task is to reconstruct an author’s ideology.

22. Assumptions

23. Assumptions Marxism is not primarily a literary theory that can be used to interpret a text. It is a set of social, economic, and political ideas that its followers believe will enable them to interpret and more importantly, change the world.

24. Assumptions Marxism is material, not spiritual. All of our actions and responses to such activities are related in some way to our culture. In order to understand ourselves and our world, we must first acknowledge the interrelatedness of all our actions within the society. It is our cultural and our social circumstances that determine who we are.

25. Assumptions The structure of our society is built on a series of ongoing conflicts between social classes . Capitalists control the society’s ideology or social consciousness (hegemony) The focus of literature is the relationship of a society’s superstructure to other elements and to the base . Marxism addresses the cry of working class

26. Methodology

27. Marxism Methodology Concerns for the working classes and the individual Recognizing the interrelatedness of all human activities Deals with more than the conventional literary themes, matters of style, plot, characterization and the usual emphasis on figures of speech and other literary devices

28. Concerns of Marxism Author’s life Time/period in which the text was written Cultural milieu Ideology expressed by the author

29. Ideology Expressed by the author, as evidenced through his or her fictional world, and how this ideology interacts with the reader’s personal ideology. Expose class conflict with the dominant class and its ideology being imposed

30. The task of the critic is to uncover the ideology and show how such a destructive ideology entraps the working classes and oppresses them in every area of their lives. A critic may begin by showing how an author’s text reflects his or her ideology through an examination of the fictional world’s characters. Setting, society, or any other aspect of the text. It could also be by examining the history and the culture of the times reflected in the text

31. Questions for Analysis I s there an outright rejection of socialism in the work? Does the text raise fundamental criticism about the emptiness of life in bourgeois society? In portraying society, what approximation of totality does the author achieve? What is emphasized? What is ignored? How well is the fate of the individual linked organically to the nature of societal forces? What are the work’s conflicting forces?

32. Questions for Analysis At what points are actions or solutions to problems forced or unreal? Are characters from all social levels equally well sketched? What are the values of each class in the work? What is valued most? Sacrifice? Assent? Resistance?

33. Questions for Analysis How clearly do narratives of disillusionment and defeat indicate that bourgeoisie values (competition, acquisitiveness, chauvism ) are incompatible with human happiness? Does the protagonist defend or defect from the dominant values of society? Are those values in ascendancy or decay?