Selections from Cultural Writings

by Gramsci, Antonio; Forgas, David; Nowell-Smith, Geoffrey; Boelhower, William

• ISBN13: 9781608461363
• ISBN10: 160846136X
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2012-08-07
• Publisher: Haymarket Books

Summary

One of the world's most influential cultural critics, Antonio Gramsci's writings on the interconnection between culture and politics fundamentally changed the way that scholars view both. Among the first to argue that art is not the product of "men of genius" but rather particular historical and social contexts, Gramsci remains one of the most widely read theorists of modern culture. Antonio Gramsciwas a founding member of the Italian Communist Party and spent most of his adult life imprisoned by Benito Mussolini. After his death and the subsequent publication of his Prison Notebooks, he came to be known as one of the twentieth century's foremost cultural critics.

Author Biography

Antonio Gramsci was a founding member of the Italian Communist Party and spent most of his adult life imprisoned by Mussolini for his opposition to the Fascist regime. After his death and the subsequent publication of his Prison Notebooks he came to be known as one of the twentieth centurys foremost cultural critics, and is widely recognized as an important theorist of class, culture, and the state.

Table of Contents

Note on the Text	p. xi
Acknowledgements	p. xiv
Abbreviations of Works Cited	p. xv
General Introduction	p. 1
Proletarian Culture
Introduction	p. 16
Politics and Culture	p. 20
For a Cultural Association.	p. 20
Philanthropy, Good Will and Organization	p. 23
A Single Language and Esperanto.	p. 26
Culture and Class Struggle.	p. 31
Serial Novels.	p. 34
*Communism and Art.	p. 37
The Problem of the School.	p. 39
*Questions of Culture.	p. 41
Party Art.	p. 44
Futurism
The Futurists.	p. 46
Marinetti the Revolutionary?	p. 49
*A Letter to Trotsky on Futurism.	p. 52
Theatre Criticism
Theatre and Cinema.	p. 54
The Theatre Industry (i).	p. 56
The Theatre Industry (ii).	p. 58
The Chiarella Brothers Again.	p. 61
The Theatre Industry (iii).	p. 63
Continuation of Life.	p. 66
Contrasts.	p. 67
Emma Gramatica.	p. 68
Morality and Standards.	p. 70
Non amarmi così! by Fraccaroli.	p. 73
Anfisa by Andreyev.	p. 75
Pensaci, Giacomino! by Pirandello.	p. 77
Liolà by Pirandello.	p. 79
Così è (se vi pare) by Pirandello.	p. 81
Il piacere dellÆ onestà by Pirandello.	p. 83
Il giuoco delle parti by Pirandello.	p. 84
La ragione dagli altri by Pirandello.	p. 85
Problems of Criticism
Introduction	p. 87
Back to De Sanctis.	p. 91
Art and the Struggle for a New Civilization.	p. 93
Art and Culture.	p. 98
Adelchi Baratono.	p. 99
Literary Criticism. *Paul Nizan.	p. 99
Constituting an Epoch.	p. 102
Croce and Literary Criticism.	p. 103
Ethico-political History.	p. 104
*Educative Art.	p. 107
Criteria of Literary Criticism.	p. 108
For a New Literature (Art) through a New Culture.	p. 110
*Individualism and Art.	p. 111
Criteria of Method.	p. 112
*The Writer's Attitude.	p. 115
Non-National-Popular Characteristics of Italian Literature. *'Contentism' and 'Calligraphism'.	p. 117
*Languages of the Arts.	p. 119
*Neology.	p. 122
Sincerity (or Spontaneity) and Discipline.	p. 124
Cultural Themes. 'Rationalism' (i).	p. 125
Popular Literature. *Rationalism (ii).	p. 128
Popular Literature. *Rationalism (iii).	p. 129
Popular Literature. *'FunctionalÆ Literature.	p. 129
The New Architecture.	p. 131
Justification of Autobiography (i).	p. 132
Justification of Autobiography (ii).	p. 132
Some Criteria of 'Literary' Judgement.	p. 133
Methodological Criteria.	p. 134
Pirandello
Introduction	p. 136
Father Bresciani's Progeny: Pirandello.	p. 137
Italian Literature: Pirandello.	p. 138
Theatre of Pirandello *(i).	p. 140
Theatre of Pirandello *(ii).	p. 144
An Early Note by Pirandello.	p. 146
Canto X of Dante's Inferno
Introduction	p. 147
*'Structure' and 'Poetry'.	p. 150
Criticism of the 'Unexpressed'?	p. 153
*Pliny and Lessing.	p. 154
*Guido Cavalcanti's Death.	p. 155
Guido's Disdain.	p. 155
Vincenzo Morello.	p. 156
The 'Renunciations of Description' in the Divine Comedy.	p. 161
*The Blind Tiresias.	p. 162
*'Rastignac'.	p. 162
Language, Linguistics and Folklore
Introduction	p. 164
The Question of the Language and the Italian Intellectual Classes.	p. 167
Bellonci and Crémieux.	p. 171
Giulio Bertoni and Linguistics.	p. 173
Linguistic Problems: Giulio Bertoni.	p. 175
Linguistics: *Pagliaro.	p. 176
Linguistics: Sicardi.	p. 178
Croce's Essay 'This Round Table is Square'.	p. 179
How Many Forms of Grammar Can There Be?	p. 180
Sources of Diffusion of Linguistic Innovations in the Tradition and of a National Linguistic Conformism in the Broad National Masses.	p. 183
Different Kinds of Normative Grammar.	p. 184
Historical and Normative Grammars.	p. 184
Grammar and Technique.	p. 185
The So-called 'Question of the Language'.	p. 187
Observations on Folklore: Giovanni Crocioni.	p. 188
Observations on Folklore: æNatural LawÆ and Folklore.	p. 192
Folklore: *'Contemporary Pre-history'.	p. 194
Folklore: *Popular Songs.	p. 195
People, Nation and Culture
Introduction	p. 196
Connection of Problems.	p. 196
Popular Literature: Content and Form.	p. 203
Concept of 'National-Popular'.	p. 206
Study of the Moral and Intellectual Tendencies and Interests Prevalent in Literary Circles.	p. 212
The Study of the Historical Formation of the Italian Intellectuals.	p. 216
Humanism and Renaissance (i).	p. 217
Humanism and Renaissance (ii).
Humanism and Renaissance (iii).	p. 220
The Renaissance.	p. 222
The Sixteenth Century.	p. 235
Non-National-Popular Character of Italian Literature.	p. 236
Philosophical Novels, Utopias, etc.	p. 237
Indirect Sources: 'Utopias' and So-called 'Philosophical Novels'.	p. 238
Moments of Intensely Collective and Unitary Life in the National Development of the Italian People.	p. 241
Popular Aspects of the Risorgimento: Volunteers and Popular Intervention.	p. 244
Interpretations of the Risorgimento (i).	p. 245
Interpretations of the Risorgimento (ii).	p. 246
Gioberti and Jacobinism.	p. 247
Formation and Spread of the New Bourgeoisie in Italy.	p. 249
Ugo Foscolo and Italian Literary Rhetoric.	p. 250
Alfredo Oriani.	p. 251
Italian National Culture.	p. 252
French and Italian Historical Culture.	p. 255
Balzac.	p. 257
Julien Benda.	p. 260
Emmanuel Berl.	p. 262
The Public and Italian Literature.	p. 264
On Italian Literature: *G. A. Borgese.	p. 265
*The Italians and the Novel.	p. 266
Luigi Capuana.	p. 267
Tendencies in Italian Culture: Giovanni Cena.	p. 269
Gino Saviotti.	p. 271
Popular Literature: *Giuseppe Ungaretti.	p. 272
*The 'People' and the 'Public'.	p. 273
*Intellectuals and Literature.	p. 273
Consent of the Nation or of the 'ElectÆ.	p. 275
*The Bureaucrats.	p. 276
*Enrico Thovez.	p. 276
Antonio Fradeletto.	p. 277
Americanism: Babbitt.	p. 278
Americanism: Babbitt Again.	p. 279
Notes on American Culture.	p. 280
The English and Religion.	p. 281
Intellectuals: Notes on English Culture (i).	p. 282
Intellectuals: Notes on English Culture (ii).	p. 285
Manzoni
Introduction	p. 287
The 'Popularity' of Tolstoy and Manzoni.	p. 288
Attitude to the People in The Betrothed.	p. 291
'The Humble'.	p. 293
Manzoni and 'The Humble'.	p. 294
Popular Literature: Manzoni.	p. 294
*Irony.	p. 296
Father Bresciani's Progeny
Introduction	p. 298
Father Bresciani's Progeny.	p. 301
Two Generations.	p. 306
Ugo Ojetti and the Jesuits.	p. 306
Panzini.	p. 309
Giovanni Papini.	p. 310
Giuseppe Prezzolini.	p. 315
Curzio Malaparte.	p. 318
Luca Beltrami (Polifilo).	p. 321
Leonida Répaci.	p. 321
Giovanni Ansaldo.	p. 323
War Literature.	p. 324
The Academy of Ten.	p. 326
La Fiera Letteraria.	p. 327
Bontempelli's Novecentismo.	p. 328
'Novecentismo' and 'Super-country'.	p. 329
Super-city and Super-country.	p. 330
Jahier, Raimondi and Proudhon.	p. 331
*Enrico Corradini.	p. 332
Ardengo Soffici.	p. 333
Cardarelli and La Ronda	p. 333
A Sphinx Without Riddles.	p. 333
Portrait of the Italian Peasant.	p. 334
'Catholic Art'.	p. 335
'Technically' Catholic Writers.	p. 337
Bruno Cicognani.	p. 338
Alessandro Luzio.	p. 339
Inconclusive Debates.	p. 340
Popular Literature
Introduction	p. 342
Influence of French Romantic Serials.	p. 345
*ÆInterest'.	p. 346
*Carlo Linati on 'Interest'.	p. 348
Serial Novels.	p. 349
*The Heroes of Popular Literature.	p. 350
Guerin Meschino.	p. 350
Raffaello Giovagnoli's Spartaco.	p. 352
*Aldo Sorani on Popular Literature.	p. 353
Popular Origin of the 'Superman'.	p. 355
Various Types of Popular Novel.	p. 359
Popularity of Italian Literature.	p. 362
*Populist Tendencies.	p. 363
The Book Fair.	p. 364
Popular Theatre and Novel.	p. 364
Statistics.	p. 365
Verne and the Scientific-geographical Novel.	p. 367
The Detective Novel (i).	p. 369
The Detective Novel (ii).	p. 370
Cultural Derivatives of the Serial Novel.	p. 374
*André Moufflet on the Serial Novel.	p. 375
*Novelized Biographies.	p. 377
*The Operatic Conception of Life.	p. 377
Popular Literature: Opera.	p. 378
Popular Literature: Operatic Taste.	p. 379
Oratory, Conversation, Culture.	p. 380
Journalism
Introduction	p. 386
Cultural Themes: Ideological Material.	p. 389
Italian Intellectuals.	p. 390
Types of Periodical: Dilettantism and Discipline.	p. 399
Types of Periodical: The Final Evolutionary Being.	p. 401
Types of Periodical: *Critical Information.	p. 402
Journalism: Almanacs.	p. 403
Journalism: Readers.	p. 404
Journalism: Intellectual Movements and Centres.	p. 405
Journalism: Types of Periodical: *External Appearance.	p. 407
Journalism: Types of Periodical: *Political Education.	p. 408
*Integral Journalism.	p. 408
*Types of Newspaper.	p. 410
Types of Periodical.	p. 412
*Types of Periodical: Moralizing Reviews.	p. 420
Yearbooks and Almanacs.	p. 422
Cattaneo.	p. 423
Original Essays and Translations.	p. 423
Science Columns.	p. 423
Schools of Journalism.	p. 425
Concordance Table	p. 427
Index	p. 440
*Asterisk indicates that the tide is not Gramsci's, but supplied by the editors.
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