Marxism: Introduction

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Marxism Introduction

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Basic Questions

• Is money (or the economic relations we are in)
  the most important determinant in our life?
• our achievements
• our social relations
• our ideas
• literature and all the cultural products.

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Marxism Focuses

• Dialectic Materialism -- Marx and Vulgar Marxism
• Literature Society Marxist Views and
  Althussers theory of Ideology
• Marxist Literary Critics Jameson and Eagleton
• Cultural Marxism (if time allows)

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Marx Basic Ideas

1. Critique of capitalism Exploitation of
   laborers and Alienation of them from their
   productive process
2. (His Dialectic View of History Revises Hegels
   view of history)
3. Dialectic Materialism
4. Social Structure Base and Superstructure

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Social Structure Base and Superstructure

• Base-- The sum total of the relations of
  production constitutes the economic structure of
  society, the real foundation
• Superstructure--a legal and political
  superstructure, cultural institutions and forms
  of social consciousness.
• Relations between --
• The mode of production of material life
  conditions the social, political and intellectual
  life process in general.

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Marxs Critique of Capitalism

• Capitalism caused by industrialisms
  amplification of labor power with machines
• surplus values
  accumulation and expansion of capitals
• 2. Consequences exploitation and alienation of
  laborers, exchange values over use values
  reification(??) and commodification of human
  relations
• 3. Marxs argument State-owned properties
  (example clips of The Greatest Thinker Marx)

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Marxs Critique of Capitalism (2)

• Example 2 Rocking Horse Winner
• I. Central questions
• Why does the family hear a voice? Why do toys
  here it, too? p. 296 295
• How is the rocking horse used as a means of
  production? (horse race) How is the boy, laborer
  of the family? (luck vs. lucre work
  mysticism)
• What role does the family (mother, uncle,
  Bassette) play in the exploitation of the boy to
  death? (Bassettes and the uncles partnership
  208-209, the mothers birthday gift p. 301)

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Marxs Critique of Capitalism (3)

• Example 2 Rocking Horse Winner
• 2. --Related issues fetishism
• ?????????????
• -- Commodities as system of signs. (e.g. The
  Lesson)

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Dialectic Materialism Marxs Two major
Statements

• It is not the consciousness of men that
  determines their being, but, on the contrary,
  their social being that determines their
  consciousness.
• (In other words-- Consciousness does not
  determine life life determines consciousness.)

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Marx Two major Statements (2)

• The philosophers have only interpreted the world
  in various way the point is to change it.

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Social Structure Base and Superstructure (2)

• Other ways to describe their relations
• reflect, determine ultimately, cause,
  condition,sets the limit
• Vulgar Marxisms reflectionism (presupposes a
  homology in social structure)
• Example The Bicycle Thief

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Social Structure Base and Superstructure (3)

• Ideology the ruling ideas of the ruling class
  imposed on the other classes.

• Superstructure

Parallel, reflect
Base as foundation, center
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Althussers idea of social formation de-centered

• Relative autonomy of the social levels and
  ultimate determination by the base

Superstructure Superstructure


Base Base Base Base Base