Response Paper - "Ideology and Ideological State Apparatuses"

Ideology

Ideology is a pure illusion, a pure dream as nothingness. Ideology has no history. The only history is the history of concrete individuals. History of ideology is the history of class struggle. It is directly related to Freud's preposition that the unconscious is eternal. So ideology too is eternal.

According to Althusser ideology is the representation of imaginary relationship of individuals to their real conditions of existence.

Ideology >Illusion > Allusion to the reality

Ideology does not represent their real condition of existence. It is their relation to the real condition of existence or imaginary representation of real world. It has material existence too. Ideology always exist in apparatuses and its practice. As far as a single subject is concerned the existence of the ideas of his belief is material.In that his ideas are material actions inserted into material practices governed by material rituals which are themselves defined by the material ideological apparatuses from which derive the ideas of that subject.

Disappeared- terms of ideas

Survive- terms subject consciousness, belief and actions.

Appear – the terms practices, rituals,ideological apparatuses.

Ideology is a system of ideas and representations( images, myths,ideas or concepts, according to which dominate the mind of a man or social group.Ideology is structural and must be studied synchronically.Ideology is eternal since it omnipresent in its immutable form. “

There is no practice except in ideology, and there is no ideology except by subject and for subjects”

Ideology interpallates individuals as subjects

The practice of rituals of ideological recognition assures that we are concrete individuals distinguishable and irreplaceable subjects.Ideology functions in a way that it transforms individual as subjects. It includes

.The mutual recognition of subjects and subject.

.Subjects recognition of each other.

.Finally subjects recognition of himself.

Althusser exposed a ghost in the machine of capitalism. In this essay he analyses how capitalism perpetrated itself through Ideological State Apparatuses and how dominant social system and institutions mould human subjects through ideology.

1 Ultimate condition of production is the reproduction of the conditions of production This happens in two ways

1.Productive forces

2.The existing relations of production

Reproduction of the productive force means reproduction of labour power. Maintenance of labour power is done by material means- through wages. Reproduction of labour power requires not only reproduction of skills, but also reproduction of its submission to the rules of established order submission to the ruling ideology and important thing is it is not done through professional ideology but conscientiously – production, exploitation repression. There will be relative autonomy and reciprocal action of the superstructure and base.

The State Apparatus

State is essentially a machine of repression which ensure the domination of ruling class( bourgeoisie) over working class. The repressive element of state which Althusser cals as State Apparatus consist government army police court prison etc.

RSA

singularity

work in public domain

function by violence than ideology

ISA

plurality

private domain( because it is above the law

Based by Ideology and sometime direct force is used

A plurality of ISA must exist before the existence of one RSA.

It is easier to lay down the laws in RSA than in ISA.

A class cannot hold state power for a long period without exercising its hegemony over and in the RSA. ISA is the cite of bitter form of class struggle.The class in power cannot lay down the law of ISA easily as like in RSA. Because of the former ruling class retained there for a long time. Exploited class express itself there either by utilization of their contradiction or by conquering combat position in them in struggle. In reproduction of the conditions of production primarly concerned with wages

Labour is rewarded with wages and this quantity of value is not decided by biological guaranteed minimum wage but by the needs of historical minimum and this historical need is imposed from above.

This diverse skills of labour power is attained through Educational institutions from where children study the “know how”Besides the skills children learns to discipline themselves and they turns to be mere bodies through which power is disseminated. So reproduction of the submission to rules of established order ultimately through exploitation and repression perpetuate the domination of ruling class.

Infrastructure and superstructure

Althusser explains the idea of base and superstructure with an emphasis of two things, the relative autonomy of the superstructure with respect to the base.There is a reciprocal action of the superstructure on the base.

State is an exploiting machine which enables the capitalist to subject the labour to the process of surplus value extortion The state consist state power , for the seizure and conservation of it the class struggle happens.

Marxist Theory of State

The state is a repressive state apparatus

State power and state apparatus must be distinguished

The objective of class struggle is state power and dominant class uses state apparatus

Proleteriate must sieze state power in order to destroy the existing bourgeoisie state apparatus

But this theory in Althussers opinion neglect the complexity of functioning. This concept disregarded The distinction between state power and state apparatus and the existence of ISA.

RSA and ISA

RSA consist of the government administration the army the police the courts the prisons etc and this functions on the basis of violence.

ISA consists of

The ISA present before us in the form of distinctive special institutions

Religious ISA

Family ISA

Trade union

Educational

Legal

Political ( the political system including different parties)

Communication( press, radio, tv)

Cultural (Literature, Arts, Sports etc)

Despite the diversity of ISA it is unified on the basis of ideology (through which it functions). “No class can hold state power over a long period without at the same time exercising its hegemony over and in the state ideological apparatuses”

RSA securing the political conditions of the reproduction of relations of production and the political conditions for the action of the ISA.The intermediation of the ruling ideology ensures harmony between RSA and ISA and between the different State Ideological Apparatus.

Then Althusser gives an account of historical revolution of ISA.In ancient era there was only absolute monarchies number of ISA was a few, their individual types are different. In middle age church educational and cultural was separated from them. Political ideological Apparatus, powerful proto trade union was there. The publishing and communication belong to the church.

Education is one of the powerful ISA through which lessons for submission before ruling class ideology is taught. Children for years squeezed by Family ISA and Educational ISA. Ruling ideology is taught and turns them skilled laborer middle class executives petty bourgeoisie or intellectuals of the collective labourer, agents of exploitation, or powerful ideologists.

The contrasting virtues are taught by family, books, entertainment film or even a play stadium can taught them many things. Significant thing is it is obligatory, By apprenticeship, massive inculcation of ideology happens and relation of production is ensured. Teacher who are respectful of conscience and freedom of children and who can teach against the ideology, the system and practices which victimize them is very rare. Infact teachers are not aware of these things.Even the institution of religion has been replaced by Educational ISA.

Althusser says that “ Within ideology we have to outline discourse which tries to break with ideology in order to dare to be the beginning of scientific discourse on ideology.

“All ideology hails or interpellates concrete individuals as concrete subjects, by the functioning of the category of subject”.Ideology functions in a way that it transforms individuals into subjects.

Terry Eagleton has criticised Althusser's concept of ideology. For Althusser human individuals are the product of many different social determinant and they have no essential unity.They are simply the work as function or effect of the social structure, as occupying a place in a mode of product. But this is not the way we perceive ourselves. We perceive ourselves as free, unified autonomous self generating individuals. We always feel a significant relation to society and the world at large which gives us enough sense of meaning and enable us to live purposefully.

Terry Eagletons allusion of ideology to Lacans 'mirror stage is significant in this context. Ideology subtle pervasive and unconscious is the very medium in which we live out our relation to society, the realm of signs and social practice which binds us to the social structure and lends us a coherent purpose and identity

The human subject is supplied with a satisfyingly unified image of selfhood by identifying with an object which reflects this image back to it in a closed narcissistic rule.

Individual =Child

Society = Mirror

Unconscious and human society are alike.Unconscious is the effect of our relations with one another. The unconscious so to speak exist outside rather than within us or it exists between us as our relationships do.

It is a vast tangled network which surround us and weaves itself through us. The best image for such a network is language , which is beyond us and the very stuff which we are made of.It always pre exists us “Language, the unconscious the parent and the symbolic order, these terms in Lacan are not exactly synonymous, but they are intimately allied.

Will Durant says about Plato that “Plato became so devoted to generalities that they began to determine his particulars, so devoted to ideas that they began to define or select his facts”. Like that Althusser was so much concerned about the social structure and economic life that he never analysed life in its subtle levels.

Bibliography

Eagleton Terry. Literary Theory :An Introduction. United States :The University of Minnesota Press.1996. Print.

Althusser, Louis. “Ideology and Ideological State Apparatuses (Notes towards an Investigation)”. Norton Anthology of Theory and Criticism. Ed. Vincent B. Leitch. New York: Norton & Company, 2001. 1476-1509. Print.