LiteratureLesson 3 of 4 in the course Postcolonial and feminist criticism

Marxist Literary Criticism: Theory and Reading Methods

5 flashcards · 5 quiz questions · 5 match pairs · 5 fill-in sentences · English

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Summary

Marxist literary criticism examines literature in relation to the economic structures, social classes, and historical conditions of the society in which it is produced. This lesson introduces the ideas behind the approach and traces how Marxist thought shaped literary criticism.

Marxist thought begins from the premise that people’s material conditions and social relationships shape their lives and ideas. Means of production are the resources, tools, and systems used to produce goods. Marx argued that ownership and control of these means are central to how societies are organized.

All flashcards

What are the base and superstructure?
The base is a society’s economic organization, including its forces and relations of production. The superstructure includes political, legal, cultural, and intellectual institutions connected to that foundation.
How do the bourgeoisie and proletariat differ?
The bourgeoisie owns and controls the means of production. The proletariat does not own them and sells its labor to earn a living.
What is class consciousness, and why does it matter?
Class consciousness is the recognition that people share a class position and common interests. Workers’ recognition of exploitation as a shared condition can support collective action.
What was socialist realism?
A Soviet literary approach that glorified the proletariat’s struggle toward social progress and influenced literature and official criticism.
What does Marxist literary criticism connect a text to?
It connects a text’s form, style, and meaning to historical material conditions, class relations, and ideological forces.

Quiz questions

  1. What is the main emphasis of Marx’s Capital?Answer: The logic and dynamics of capitalism, including conflict between capital and labor.
  2. Which emphasis is especially associated with The Communist Manifesto?Answer: Class struggle as a driving force of history.
  3. According to Terry Eagleton’s caution, what should Marxist literary criticism examine beyond the social conditions surrounding a work?Answer: The work’s form, style, and meaning in relation to its history.
  4. In Lu Xun’s “An Incident,” an old woman in ragged clothes is caught in a shaft during strong winds. What does the narrator initially suspect?Answer: That she is pretending to be injured to gain sympathy.
  5. What makes a Marxist interpretation of literature persuasive?Answer: It supports a claim about society with textual details and historical context.

Based on the Wikipedia article Marxist literary criticism, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Adapted into a summary, flashcards and quizzes.

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