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Political Theory
Collecting one’s previously published articles in a single volume might legitimately arouse pessimism among the cynical. Gathering them under the name of Gramsci, however, gives some cause for optimism. Sassoon’s work on Gramsci is important and, although this is a book with many different themes, the first three substantial chapters focus directly on his thought, are certainly worthy of republishing, and ought to be read by those interested in the application of Gramsci’s ideas today. These chapters investigate Gramsci’s discussion of intellectuals and language as indices in gauging social and political transformations. Sassoon’s Gramsci is an independent thinker willing to revise his analysis in light of rapidly changing circumstances; his lesson is both methodological and substantial, pointing us to the reorganization of power and conflict in industrialized societies, and to the need to examine the way our categories constrain the interpretation of phenomena.
The remaining chapters vary in their relative distance from Gramsci’s ideas but they develop his insights in relation to selected issues in contemporary politics: citizenship, New Labour, civil society, education policy amongst others. As Sassoon confesses herself, this is an eclectic mix of debates and issues linked primarily by their author’s interest in Gramsci. Unfortunately, there is no real engagement with wider debates on Gramsci’s thought and its application in fields such as cultural studies or political economy. Thus the broader issue of what it means to ‘apply’ Gramsci is not contextualized. Nevertheless, readers would be recommended to dip into this book for insights, if not a specific thesis.
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