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Political Science And International Relations


TEST 5 MODEL ANSWERS

1. Can we understand Political Theory without history ? What is relationship between


Political Theory & Philosophy? What is a limitation of scientific methods of political
science?

Answer;

The relationship [ between political theory and history has been most profoundly established
by scholars of historical approach such as George Sabine. Political theory without history is
considered as a structure without a base. According to Prof. L. S. Rathore. without history,
the delight of political theory can never be retrieved.

The intrinsic relationship between political theory and history has been established on
various grounds. Political theory is history in the sense that it seeks to understand the time,
place and circumstances in which it evolves. Thus, if it ignores its historical context, it loses
it strength and message. Plato s communism and its difference from Marx’ s communism can
be understood by understanding the difference in their historical contexts.

Political concepts such as justice, liberty, equality, state etc. have evolved through the annals
of time. Thus, according to Prof . S. P. Verma. the universal character of political concepts
explains the intrinsic relationship between political theory and history.

According to Cobban, the historical approach to political theory, in which a sense of history
is instilled to the full, is the right way to consider the problems of political theory. It is so
because the past acts as a valuable guide in endeavor of proper and suitable solution to
the contemporary social and political problems.

However, excessive adherence on historical conception of the political theory can be


misleading because each specific situation is unique with new challenges. Thus , political
theory should be both continuity from historical contexts and innovation for future.

Political theory and Political philosophy

The relationship between political theory and political philosophy has been well enunciated
by scholars of normative theory such as Leo Strauss . According to Leo Strauss, political
theory and political philosophy are complementary to each other and both are parts of
political thought. According to Sabine, philosophy has provided the political theory with its
valuation factor.

Thus, the contemporary relationship between political theory and political philosophy is
based on the following grounds.

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1. Without philosophy, political theory becomes meaningless because only through
normative values, political theory can analyze the present and future both.
2. Political theory is a philosophy because it not only seeks to know the nature of
things but also attempts as to why things really exist. According to Leo Strauss,
evolutional aspect of a political activity can only be achieved through interlinking
political theory and philosophy.
3. According to Leo Strauss, political theory is philosophy in the sense that it
attempts to know the nature of political things along with the knowledge of
ideal political order. He argues that a political theorist should possess more than
an opinion, which can be achieved only through knowledge of values such as
equality, justice, liberty, etc. which are an indispensable part of political
philosophy.
4. Political philosophy is a part of normative political theory, for its attempts to
establish inter relationships between concepts.

Thus, it is accurate to say that every political philosopher is a theorist , though every
political theorist is not a political philosopher because the scope of political theory is wider.

Limitations of Scientific methods of Political Science:

Scientific method of political science focuses on observation of facts and give explanations of
events in order to propose universally recognized and reliable principles based on cause
effect relationships. According to Leslie Lipson. scientific method involves recording the
details of what men do, seeking to explain why they do.

In order to make the subject matter more relevant and authentic, proponents of scientific
methods call for shifting the focus of study from values to processes, behavior and systems.
Scholars such as Arthur Bentley and David Easton s behavioural approach emphasizes
on scientific, objective and value free study of political phenomenon.

However, while the scientific method has produced more authentic study of political science,
it has led to, in words of David Easton , mad craze for scienticism . Moreover, the
scientific method is limited in the sense that unlike natural sciences, political science and its
concepts are dynamic and cannot be assumed to be equally applicable to all situations at all
times. Thus, with excessive dependence on scientific methods study of political science can
be divorced from problems of ever dynamic social issues. Also, the study of political cannot
be confined solely to scientific knowledge because it is equally concerned with determining
values such as justice, humanity, equality etc.

2. “ Political Theory as a theory, in ideal terms, is dispassionate and disinterested. As


science, it will describe political reality without trying to pass judgment on what is being
depicted , either implicitly or explicitly . As a philosophy , it will describe rule of conduct
which will secure good life for all of society. ( Andrew Hacker). Critically Examine.

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Answer:

Although a distinction can be made between political theory and similar terms such as
political science and political philosophy, the political theory must comprehend both political
science and philosophy.

Describing the nature of political theory, George Catlin observed that the theory of politics
is itself divided into political science and political philosophy. It is a science as it admits
concepts such as justice, equality, etc. which are observable and testable, and responds to the
requirements of reason and rationalism.

On the other hand, political philosophy is a part of normative political theory as it


provides answers to questions such as: what is justice, concepts of rights, distinction between
is and ought etc. In addition, political philosophy attempts to resolves conflicts between
political theories, which might appear equally acceptable in given circumstances. For
example: without philosophical approach, both Rawlsian theory of Justice as fairness &
Amartya Sen s theory of justice as development of capabilities may not appear equally
acceptable.

In this context, Andrew Hacker in his work, Political theory: Philosophy , Ideology,
Science (1961) points to the dual nature of political theory. According to him, every
political theorist has a dual role of a scientist as well as of a philosopher. He argues that no
theorist can make a lasting contribution to human knowledge about politics unless combining
the dual roles in the realms of both science and philosophy.

According to Hacker, in the realm of science, political theory uses the empirical approach to
describe and explain the realities of political behavior. Its purpose is to obtain reliable
knowledge about facts and give explanation of political events. Behavioral approach given
by Robert Dahl , exemplifies the scientific approach to the study of politics.

As a political philosophy, a theorist is concerned with normative values to prescribe the goals
which citizens, state and society ought to pursue. In other words, it attempts to generalize
about right conduct in political life. Thus, political theory, as philosophy, deals with the
needs, objectives and goals of political sphere.

Thus, broadly political theory is concerned with two types of statements:

> Empirical Statement (as Science): descriptive statement based on observation or


facts of political life.
> Evaluative Statement (as Philosophy): prescriptive statement based on value
judgments.

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3. Critically examine the relevance of behavioural and post behavioural approaches
towards revival of political science as a discipline.

Answer:

During 1950s, the exponents of new political science, such as David Easton, began to
question the continued relevance of the traditional normative approach to politics. According
to David Easton, in his work, Political System: An Enquiry to the State of Political
Science (19531 , argued that while economists and sociologists have produced a systematic
study of human behavior in their spheres, political scientists have lagged behind.

According to Easton, the study of politics, by employing traditional normative approaches,


has divorced it from the contemporary issues, such as fascism, prevailing in the society.
Moreover , being a “ value laden approach , the study of politics became biased in favour
of certain values.

Thus, Easton called for binding up a behavioural political science, closer to other social
sciences, to make the subject matter more relevant and authentic. In order to make the study
of political science more scientific, he advised to shift the focus from study from values to
the study of political behavior, processes & system.

Behaviouralism promoted value free & empirical study of political science to take its due
place in the decision-making process. It emphasized on the study of human behavior as
voters, revolutionaries, leaders, etc. to construct an explanatory & descriptive political theory.
According to Lipson , the behavioral approach study “ what men do, seeking to explain
why they do.

However, in an attempt to revive the importance of political science in decision making


process, behavioural approach resulted into a “ mad craze for scienticism and as such,
led to estrangement of political science from the social issues. David Easton criticized that
due to over emphasis an empirical method ; political science looked more of a discipline of
mathematics rather than social science. By placing over emphasis on study of human
behavior and overlooking importance of values , ideas and philosophy, study of politics lost
its ability to evaluate and prescribe rule of conduct.

For example: when democratic political system is explained in terms of number of voters,
question of whether the electoral system is conducive to the spirit of democracy is neglected.

It is in this context, David Easton launched post behavioural revolution to convert


political science from a pure science to applied science. He held that unlike natural scientists,
social scientists have bigger responsibility as they are not only concerned with “ what is” but
should also suggest “ what ought to be” .

Post Behaviouralism emerged as a reform movement to oppose the efforts of the behavioural
approach to make political science a value free science. It is a future oriented approach aimed
at solving the social problems of both present and future. In this way, by inter linking the

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empirical and normative study of political science to include all realities of politics, social
change, values etc. Post Behaviouralism is instrumental in revival of political science by
making it more relevant to the society. It has also given rest to the debate of fact and value
dichotomy.

4. Liberalism is not easy to describe, much less to define because it is hardly less a
habit of mind , than a body of doctrine. (Laski ). In light of this statement explain why
Liberalism is called as Amorphous Philosophy.

Answer:

Liberalism, which has been dominant political philosophy, was not developed at any
particular point of time by a particular political thinker. Thus, it does not represent any
coherent body of doctrines and has been too dynamic and flexible to be contained in a
precise definition. According to Hacker , although a common term in political vocabulary, it
is not easy to be defined precisely.

Different scholars have assigned different meaning to the philosophy of liberalism. Some
scholars have conceived it as a Faith, while others have considered it as attitude of mind.
According to Richard Wellheim . liberalism is the belief in the value of the liberty of
individual. Heater calls liberty as a quintessence of liberalism. For the liberal, it is the
individual who counts because only placing priority on the rights of the individual, freedom
can be ensured.

According to Sartori . liberalism is the theory and practice of individual liberty, judicial
defense and constitution state. Koerner argues that liberalism begins and ends with the ideals
of individual freedom, individual human rights and happiness.

Owing to this variation in the definition of liberalism by different scholars, Laski has argued
that liberalism is expression of temperament rather than trend. According to him, liberalism
implies a passion for individual liberty and requires a power to be tolerant.

The moral and ideological foundation of liberalism is based on commitment to distinctive set
of values and beliefs. These values include individual freedom, rationality, justice, toleration
and diversity.

Amorphous nature of Liberalism

The dynamic nature of liberalism as a philosophy is evident from the fact that it has been
continuously changing since its inception. According to Arblaster, liberalism should not be
seen as a fixed and absolute term, but as a specific historical movement of ideas that began
with Renaissance and reformation . According to Grimes , it is not a static creed or dogma,
rather a tentative attitude towards social problems.

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Thus, as liberalism does not have a monolithic tradition and has undergone many changes, it
requires a historical rather than a static type of analysis. In other words, liberalism is not a
fixed mode of thought, but an intellectual movement which seeks to accommodate new ideas
in order to face new situations and respond to the changing needs of the time.

Liberalism received most detailed and lucid expression in the writings of John Locke, who is
often considered as the father of liberal political philosophy. The earliest liberal tradition,
classical liberalism, was negative in character. Being based on the idea of self-sufficient
individualism, classical liberalism equated freedom with the absence of external constraints
on individual. It, thus, treated state as a necessary evil and proposed idea of minimal or
night watchman state in which state s proper role is restricted to maintenance of orderly
existence. It defended the right to private property and advocated for free market economy.

However, due to popularity of the doctrine of socialism and crises of capitalism, the concept
of liberalism has undergone a change in modem times. The process of shift from classical
( negative) liberalism to modem (positive).

..
Liberalism started with J S Mill , who realized the negative implications of negative liberty
as well as utilitarianism. Mill has brought elements of idealism to reform classical liberalism
and to give humanitarian touch of liberalism. However, T. H. Green is known as the father
of the positive or modern liberalism, who advanced a full-fledged theory of the welfare state.
Unlike negative liberalism, freedom for positive liberals is the ability of individual to develop
full potential. The conception of role of state is different in modem liberalism, which provide
greater role of state and direct intervention in the form of social welfare for its citizens.

In the post World War II period, the liberal tradition went through further mutation mainly
with a view to save mankind from the tyranny of totalitarian system or government by
majority. This was the contemporary version of classical liberalism, known as neo liberalism
or libertarianism , which seeks to restore laissez faire individualism . Proponents of neo
liberalism, such as, Havak , Milton Friedmen and Robert Nozick . criticized welfare state
and opposed state intervention on the ground that transformed welfare state became
unsustainable and unlimited and transformed into many state performing all functions.
According to Hayek, welfare policies of state did not benefit the targeted sections, merely
resulted into divergences of resources from productive to nonproductive sectors.

Thus, proponents of neo liberalism called for rolling back of the state to restore the individual
liberty. They sought to revive the principle of laissez faire not only in economic sphere, but
also social and political spheres. In contemporary world, neo liberal ideas found practical
manifestation through inter related principles of liberalization, privatization and
globalization.

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5. Stripped to its essentials. Fascism is the totalitarian organization of government and
society by a single party dictatorship, intensely Nationalist. Fascist , Militarist and
Imperialist . ( William Ebenstein). Critically discuss.

Answer:

Fascism is considered to be an ill -assorted Hodge podge of ideas because there is no single
unifying idea that guided the fascist movement. Fascism is a complex incoherent doctrine that
has emerged from heterogeneous sources and socio-cultural traditions, only to evolve an
instrument of mass appeal and mass mobilization for the attainment of political goals.

According to William E. Benstein . despite being an incoherent philosophy, it is possible to


identify its core principles or a fascist minimum or its structural core. They are as follows:

• Anti - Rationalism: It constitute the fundamental idea of the fascist world view.
Fascism suggests abandoning reason and rational thinking by proclaiming that
human beings are motivated by their powerful emotions and will rather than the
rational mind. It facilitated the indiscriminate use of myths for mass propaganda by
the proponents of fascism.
• Totalitarianism: Fascism is characterized by a totalitarian organization of
government and society by a single party dictatorship. A fascist state seeks total
power through politicization of every aspect of social and personal existence. The
totalitarian element of fascist state is based on the belief that human existence is only
meaningful if determined by community and thus, state is recognized as universal
ethical will. In this context, Mussolini proclaimed Everything for the state,
nothing against or outside the state. Thus, fascist state can make any demand, give
any order obligation without any opposition.
• Elitism : Fascism, unlike conventional political philosophy, radically rejects equality
and is deeply elitist and patriarchical . It is based on the idea that people are
essentially different in their mental make up, physical strength and spiritual or natural
endowments. Fascist notion of elitist is based on Nietsche’ s idea of over man or
super man which refers to a supremely gifted individual.

• Militarist: As military organizations are based on unity of command, order and


perfect subordination of rank to higher command, a party militia in fascism is used to
reinforce the sense of nationalism and wipe out opposition. The extreme stress on
male dominance and exaltation of youth in a fascist state is also related to its military
component.
• Ultra nationalism & Imperialism: Fascism embraces an extreme version of a
tradition of chauvinistic and expansionist nationalism. This tradition regarded nations
not as equal and interdependent entities but as natural rivals in struggle for
dominance. Fascist nationalism didn t preach respect for distinctive culture or
national traditions, but asserted the superiority of one nation over all others.
• Influenced by social Darwinism ( survival of the fittest ) and nationalism became
inextricably linked to imperialism and militarism , because fascism asserted that

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national superiority over other can be established only through expansionism, war and
conquest.

6. Class conflict represents the sociological foundation of Marxism; concept of surplus


value represents its economic foundation Elucidate and Comment.

Answer:

Karl Marx has been the most influential political philosopher and his work Communist
manifesto has been described by Laski as one of the most outstanding political
documents of all times . Among others, the Marxist doctrine of class conflict and the theory
of surplus value forms the core tenets of Marxism, and its theory of social change.

Doctrine of class conflict:

• According to Karl Marx , Class struggle has been the most prominent and recurring
feature of all human societies . He held that the history of all hitherto existing societies
has been the history of class struggle. Thus , Marx envisaged history as a succession of
struggles between opposed classes for economic and political power.
• Except the primitive communist stage, all historical ages have been characterized by the
antagonism between the dominant (haves or owners of means of production) and the
dependent (have-not) classes . In the slavery system, feudal system, class conflict
between lords and serfs, in the capitalist system, the bourgeois and proletariat .
• According to Marx, by the virtue of ownership of means of production, the dominant
class exploits the dependent class, which ultimately results into the class antagonism.
Marx asserted that the interests of the contending classes are irreconcilable and, thus, no
compromise is possible between the conflicting classes. Therefore, Marx held that the
inherent contradiction of conflicting classes of every epoch can be resolved only through
the annihilation of exploiting classes.
• Thus, the fundamental Marxian thesis is that the class struggle between contending
classes is the mechanism or the manner in which society progress from one stage to
another in the course of its historical development. Also, Marxian programme of action
or social revolution is based on idea to put an end to the class struggle by establishing a
classless communist society. It is in this context, it can be argued that the doctrine of class
struggle represents the sociological foundation of Marxism.

Concept of surplus value:

• The concept of surplus value embodies the Marxist critique of capitalism. It is this
concept used by Marx to demonstrate and explain the entire phenomenon of exploitation
of the working class in the capitalist society.
• The Theory of surplus value is rooted in the labour theory of value which means that
value of a commodity depends on the amount of labour spent in producing it.

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• According to Marx, working class produce social commodity which are sold by the
capitalists for more than what the workers receive as wages . Thus, the working class is
not paid for the social commodities.
• The Difference between the value created by the working class and the actual value paid
to them as wages, constitute the surplus value. In other words, surplus value arises
because some part of workers labour is not paid to them and is stolen by the capitalists as
their profit, resulting in exploitation of proletariat.
• According to Marx, it is only in class-based societies that surplus value exists because the
capitalist class exploits the proletariat for its own profit. As the surplus value increases,
the workers get paid less and, as such, provide more power to capitalists to exploit.
• Also, with increase in surplus value, the purchasing power of the consumers decrease to
such an extent that market for the factory produced goods shrinks affecting the final
profits of the bourgeoise, which Marx explained as Capitalism digging its own grave.
• As the market shrinks only a few capitalists are able to survive the competition. The small
capitalists now join the ranks of proletariats, widening the gulf between proletariats and
capitalists which finally triggers the revolt in which proletariats emerge victorious.
• Thus, his concept of surplus value provides economic base of Marxism.

7. What do feminists mean when they say, Personal is Political ? Critically examine the
broad streams of feminist thought in contemporary political theory ?

Answer;

Traditional notion of Political ’ locate politics in the arena of ‘Public sphere’ of government,
public debate etc. On the other hand, family life and personal relationships have been located
in the ‘private sphere’ and thus, ‘nonpolitical’ . This tradition started with Aristotle’ s view
that ‘personal ’ is separated from political .

On the contrary, Feminists are against the public -private dichotomy as considered by the
main stream theorists. Radical feminists have been the keenest opponents of the idea that
‘politics stops were private starts’ , proclaiming instead that personal is political , they argue
that gender inequality, men’ s power and patriarchal relations are not confined to public world
alone, but characterizes all relationships between sexes- from the private to public sphere.
Female Oppression and subordination are thus considered as ‘normal’ because of Patriarchal
values intrinsically linked to private and public life.

According to Feminists if Politics takes place only within the Public sphere, the role of
women and question of sexual equality are reduced to be of minimal political importance.
Thus, Feminists emphasize on the intrinsic relations between personal and political and it is
in this spirit they challenge the traditional divide between Public man and Private
women .

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According to Susan Moller Okin . in her book, Gender justice and Family there are 4
meanings associated with the ideas that personal is political .

a. Family life and personal relationships to be subjected to normative scrutiny


b. Family creates psychological conditions which govern public life
c. State must enter into the family to regulate marriage, divorce, inheritance etc
d . It points towards the gendered division of labour

However, the idea that the personal experiences of women are rooted in their political
situation, has been objected to for its strong totalitarian implications since it suggests that
there is no aspect of life that can be free from political influences and scrutiny. In this
context, liberal feminists warn against the dangers of politicization of private sphere, which is
a realm of personal choice and individual freedom.
Feminism, as an ideology, is linked to the women’ s movement and the attempt to advance the
social role of women. However, feminism has been characterized by diversity of use and
political positions and is thus, divided into different schools such as liberal, social, radical,
post-modern, etc. Although united by a common desire to advance the role of women,
feminists disagree about how this is to be achieved.

Liberal Feminism: The philosophical basis of liberal feminism lies in the principle of
individualism, i.e. all individuals are entitled to equal treatment, regardless of their sex, race,
culture, etc . According to Mary Wollstonecraft . vindication of rights of women, women
should be entitled to same rights and privileges as men on the ground that they are human
beings . Harriot Taylor, along with J . S . Mill, argued that society should be organized on the
basis of reason and that accidents of birth, such as sex , should be irrelevant.

However, radical feminists have drawn attention to the limitations of liberal feminism and
its idea of individualism as the basis for gender politics. Individualistic perspective ignores
the fact that women are subordinated not as individuals but as a sex . The stress in the
individualism upon personhood’ make it difficult for women to act collectively on the basis
of their common gender identity on the ground of politicization of private sphere, liberal
feminists challenge the notion of ‘personal is political ’ .

Socialist feminism: They argued that the relation between sexes is rooted in the social and
economic structure. In contrast to liberal feminist, they argue that equal political rights are
meaningless unless women enjoy equal social and economic equality. They consider
patriarchy as working in coalition with capitalism and maintaining gender subordination and
class inequality. According to social feminism, women constitute a ‘reverse army of labour’
and that their confinement to domestic sphere of housework and motherhood serves the
economic interests of capitalism, and leads to their subordination.

Radical Feminism: The central feature of radical feminism is the belief that sexual
oppression is the most fundamental feature of society and other forms of injustice such as

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class exploitation, etc are secondary. According to them, gender is the deepest social cleavage
and the most politically significant. In Sexual Politics , Millet described patriarchy as
social constant running through all political, social and economic structures.

Radical feminists assert that women s liberation requires a revolutionary change by


abolishing the gender differences between men and women. They argue that liberal women,
institution of family have to be destroyed and psychological and sexual oppression operating
at all levels have to be overthrown.

Post-Modern Feminism: They reject the notion of fixed female identity and call it a
‘fiction . However, in calling the man/female divide into question, postmodern feminism
comprises the very idea of women’ s movement.

8. The theory of Hegemony has important implications for revolutionary Strategy, and
responds to the impasse of Classic Strategy based on assumptions of economic
determinism and fatalistic strategical errors. Discuss.

Answer:

Classical Marxist theory, propounded by Karl Marx, has been created around the relationship
between the two parts of human society i.e. base and super structure. For Marx , the economic
order of the society constituted the base and socio-political institutions, such as family,
church, etc. constituted the superstructure. Marx held that it is the forces of production
which is the sole relevant component of human society and super structure has no
autonomous existence.

Thus, according to classical Marxist theory the ultimate cause of social change is the change
in mode of production through revolution. It is in this context, orthodox Marxism has been
criticized of economic determinism which emphasizes only on the economic structure ( means
of production ) and devise strategy of violent overthrow of the capitalist system by
proletariats.

However, Gramsci contends this Marxist position and held that based on the wrong
assumptions of sole relevance of factors of production orthodox Marxists have produced a
defective strategy that failed to put an end to the exploitation of the working class.

Gramsci, under the influence of Benedetto Croce , has realized the importance of cultural and
ideological factors which form a part of the super structure. Thus, he modified Marx model
by proposing the theory of hegemony. Gramsci theorized that dominant class maintained its
position through a mix of shear force (coercive force through state) and consent with the
active participation of civil society. The Civil society plays an important role in
manufacturing consent to domination through particular set of ideas and values which tend
to become common sense’ .

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Gramsci referred to this ideological domination as hegemony, which is an internalized form


of Domination that differs from external coercive domination.
It represents the leadership of the Dominant class and operates in an invisible manner through
the institutions of civil society. Thus, according to Gramsci it is difficult to bring
revolution as defined by Marx in countries where civil society is developed.

In this context Gramsci redefined the strategy needed to establish the leadership of working
class by producing counter hegemony . Gramsci conceived two methods for challenging
Bourgeoise Hegemony and bring revolution:

1. War of Position: It is the strategy to resist the cultural and ideological domination to
create counter Hegemony. It is basically an attempt to control the civil society with the help
of alliance with intellectual class ( Organic Intellectuals belonging to subaltern classes).
According to Robert Cox , war of position is the slow process of creating alternative
institutions and intellectual resources for the subversion of Hegemony.

2. War of manoeuvre: Once the war of Position is won, the revolutionary class can go for
direct action to capture the dominant position in the society.

Thus, by emphasizing on important role played by the civil society institutions in maintaining
the ideological and cultural hegemony over the working class, Gramsci redefined the
Marxian strategy to produce a plausible and substantive revolution.

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