Brett Wallen
English 752
July 25, 2004
Discussion
Questions for Gramsci’s “The Formation of the Intellectuals”
- What exactly does Gramsci mean when he talks about
“intellectuals”? How does his definition differ from traditional Marxist
thinking about intellectuals and their role in society?
- When Gramsci says that: “All men are intellectuals, one
could therefore say: but not all men have in society the function of
intellectuals”, what does he mean (1140)? What are the ramifications of this
idea for the concepts of author and text?
- “In the modern world, technical education, closely bound
to industrial labour even at the most primitive and unqualified level, must
form the basis of the new type of intellectual” (1141). What do you make of
this statement by Gramsci? How might the statement apply to pedagogical
theory in the college/university classroom?
- What is “hegemony”? What role does literature and its
study play in hegemony and its propagation?
- Do you think that independence for intellectuals from
the, “dominant social group”, is possible or even desirable (1139)?