ANTONIO GRAMSI

ANTONIO GRAMSCI

 

Ø  Antonio Gramsci enriched Marxism

Ø  Given theory of Hegemony and concept of passive revolution.

Ø  Given a very refreshing and redefined concept of Civil Society

Ø  Most of his writings were produced in prison that’s why his writings are known as Prison Notebooks.

Context:

ü  20th Century – The century to which Gramsci belongs was a very eventful century.

ü  Two World War happens.

ü  The first Communist Revolution takes place in Soviet Russia (1970)

ü  He had advantage of living in a period which was a very turbulent. Therefore some of the ideas of Gramsci particularly within the Marxist tradition, which perhaps Marx and Engels were not privileged to see in the 19th century Europe.

ü  Gramsci had the advantage of seeing a different face of Capitalism. He had the advantage of seeing certain development in Capitalism in 20th century.

Biography

Ø  Antonio Gramsci was born in born in Sardinia, Italy in 1891.

Ø  Belongs to a lower middle class family.

Ø  Sardinia is an Island in Mediterranean sea between Spain and Italy. It is located in the most Southern part of Italy.

Ø  Sardinia had a backward economy- mostly agriculture.

Ø  As far as Capitalism is concerned Italy had a very uneven development.

Ø  Late industrialization in Italy and Germany : late urbanization

Ø  Therefore Fascism and Nazism in Italy and Germany was explained in the reference of unevenness of Capitalism in Europe. The way they wanted to compete with the more industrialized world – a kind of economic rivalry starts.

Ø  Gramsci was born in a place in Italy which was not developed in terms of industrial infrastructure.

Ø  Gramsci had a difficult childhood: due to an accident he had hunchback when he was  4 years old

he was teased by his friends for such physical condition.

his father imprisoned for the charge of embezzlement when he was 11

he worked as an office boy to meet his financial needs.

his studies discontinued which he resumed after some time.

Ø  Studied language,  literature and philosophy at Turin

Ø  Started writing in Socialist magazine

Ø  Joined Italian Socialist Party in 1913

Ø  Influences: Marx, Benedetto Croce, Niccolo Machiavelli, Engels, Lenin, Pareto, Bardiga etc.

Ø  Gramsci is known throughout the world for his writings on POLITICS AND CULTURE Gramsci's work on the role of the intermediate sphere of civil society and its institutions in preserving the leadership of the ruling classes is considered one of the most unique contributions in politicial societies.

Ø  Gramsci is also known for his writings on the Hegemony (Leadership) of the ruling class and how the ruled or subjugated classes can counter homogenize for a progressive (socialist) society.

Ø  Given that Gramsci has been influenced by some of the assumptions and arguments associated with Marx, his work fits into the Neo Marxist framework.

Ø  One of the most influential work of Gramsci is his contribution to political theory in his THE PRISON NOTE BOOKS (written between 1929 and 1935) are

CIVIL SOCIETY

HEGEMONY

ROLE OF INTELLECTUALS

CRISIS

IDEA OF PASSIVE REVOLUTION

COMMON SENSE

 

CIVIL SOCIETY

Gramsci uses Marx's term for civil society—base and super structure—to describe class relations in capitalist society.

For Marx, the economic basis gives shape to the ideology of the State (superstructure), which houses the political and legal apparatus.

Gramsci introduced civil society as an intermediate sphere between the economy and the state.

This intermediary sphere which located in the superstructure comprise of civil society and hegemony. 

All institutions of civil society are located in the intermediate sphere.

These institutions include :

Religious (The Catholic Church)

Politcal (Trade Unions and Political Parties)

Cultural (Literature, Art and Mass Media)

Social (Family) and

Every day activity ( membership of clubs, social get togethers)

It is basically the civil society where the ideas that govern the societies are created.

Gramsci also made a distinction between political and civil society

Political society is the area in which the hegemony of the state can be located through its political machinery, whereas civil society is the realm in which the more invisible forms of power may be located through institutions of EDUCATION, CULTURE, AND RELIGION.

CIVIL SOCIETY: The arena in which the ideological and cultural superstructures, as well as the state's coercive nature, are negotiated. Gramsci was curious about how civil society maintains hegemony in society. He maintained that in order to retain hegemony, civil society uses the intermediate realm to establish a solid basis for the socialist state's values, ideals, and aspirations.

THE NATIONAL POPULAR : is the situation where the Italian nation comprises of the culture of both the North and South. Example : Both Opera and Folklore are two important ways of construction of the NATIONAL POPULAR which is a situation for Gramsci where the cultures of North and South come together without one imposing itself on the other.

There is lack of development of POPULAR CULTURE in ITALY  that can be shared both by ELITES and MASSES.

Using the example of the Italian government’s unjustified educational policy of 1923 Gramsci explains the emergence of the Southern question and show how ruling classes can perpetuate policies that favour them by indoctrinating and thereby obtaining the consent of the masses.

 HEGEMONY

Gramsci interest in the concept of HEGEMONY arose as a result of the rise of fascism in Italy and the faliure of working class movements in Europe

According to Gramsci any struggle for a progressive society must involve not just armed struggles (wars and manoeuvre) but ideas and idealogies which guide that struggle (wars and positions)

The importance of culture and ideology is seen in the fact that consent of masses to the aspirations of the working classes who want a new socialist state is obtained not by coercion but rather by consent.

To obtain the consent of people, the working classes must provide them with intellectual and moral leadership which incorporates their worldview, aspirations and needs into the working class revolutionary struggle.

It is through ideological indoctrination that the bourgeoise ruling class gained hegemony over the others.  

They attained supremacy because they were economically powerful and secondly using the institutions of civil society they were able to convince people that their intellectual and moral leadership was proper.

To come out of the ideological indoctrination of the ruling classes Gramsci urged the working class  to form alliances with other subordinate groups to defeate the bourgeoise state.

So far Gramsci hegemony was not exclusive to the bourgeoise, it could also be a strategy adopted successfully by the industrial working class by incorporating its interests with those of other allies withing the dominated group.

Gramsci noted that while the hegemonic group led the other subjugated groups in the struggle for a socialist state through consensus, it could also impose its aspirations and will on antagonistic groups. To do this it may even go to the extent fo liquidating these groups by using armed force if necessary.

Therefore hegemonic leadership involves a combination of both coercion and consent.

While consent obtained in civil society coercion is exercise by political society

Gramsci distinguished between two types of hegemony

1             Limited hegemony (refers to a situation where the hegemonic bloc dominates the dissenting voices through coercion and obtains their consent by force)

2                    Expansive hegemony  (where people spontaneously give consent to hegemonic bloc)

ROLE OF INTELLECTUALS

Gramsci made a distinction between Organic and traditional intellectual

Organic intellectual:  Engineers and the industrial technicians – Gramsci saw potential for the rise of an intellectual group which would lead the labor movement. These are, according to Gramsci the organic intellectuals. They rise above from the self interest and will forge large alliances or larger coalitions. Therefore they become an agency of counter hegemony of the proletariat or the subordinate classes because ultimately the hegemony have to be countered through a similar process of ideological formation or the concent generation.   

Traditional intellectuals: stays away from the web of social life. Examples of the traditional intellectuals for Gramsci, are writers, philosophers and artists. They are only interested in perpetuating the old , traditional culture.

For Gramsci in a progressive society the learning process is a constantly evolving dialogue between the intellectual and the masses.

Gramsci argued that working class has to move away from trade unionism. Gramsci could see the limitation of trade union and its activity in making change in society. Trade Union cannot go beyond economic corporate perspective. He emphasized the role of political organization for creating something new which would not possible merely by the trade unionism.

Gramsci could see the limitation of trade union and its activity.  

CRISIS

Hegemony for Gramsci means the process by which the working class obtains the consent of the subjugated by first of all understanding their worldview and then accepting and representing the world view as part of the overall project for a more progressive society.

So Hegemony is a peaceful process whereby direct consent of the people is obtained in this manner. However there are also times of dissent towards the intellectual and moral leadership of the dominant group.   

IDEA OF PASSIVE REVOLUTION

Gramsci used the term with at least two distinguishable and relatively separate meaning. The first indicated a revolution that was directed from above by elites and occurred without the active participation of masses. Where State becomes the engine or motor force for change and revolution instead of classes. His second conceptual framework described a passive revolution as a long historical process involving a set of gradual molecular changed in society

There are many scholars who belongs to the Marxist tradition tried to explain the changes, the reformist agenda of the ruling class or the state in different societies with the help of this passive revolution. Some of the Marxist scholars tried to do even in India including Sudipto Kaviraj, Partho Nath Chatterjee and Pranab Bardhan. These scholars rejected the classical bourgeoisie framework of transition and argued instead that the Indian situation has taken the form of passive revolution framework characterized by coalition rule and the relative autonomy of the state.

Common Sense

Gramsci examined the role of common sense and ideology in shaping societal beliefs and values. Common sense refers to the dominant, unquestioned beliefs and ideas that are widely accepted as normal or natural by the majority.

Ideology: refers to a more systematic and coherent set of ideas that support and reinforce the interest of the ruling class.

Common sense often aligns with the ruling class ideology and through cultural hegemony the ruling class normalize its world view making it appear  natural and common sense to everyone.

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