Gramsci as a (Non) Literary Critic

In: Telos, Volume 57, p. 83-92

Abstract

Antonio Gramsci's approach to literature, as revealed in his various writings, is examained. His essential approach to literature was, like that of Giambattista Vico, a sociological one, & his motives for writing on literature were political; he did not practice literary criticism for its own sake. In fact, his writings were not literary essays, but notes & short remarks. This reflects his conception of the role of the organic intellectual, as serving the interests of his SC, as contrasted with that of the traditional intellectual who rationalizes the exercise of power. Thus, Gramsci's writings cannot be understood outside the context of Italian politics. They were not intended as literary criticism for all time, but as contributions to the struggle against capitalism. W. H. Stoddard.