tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13701147701935961352024-02-08T02:39:05.824-08:00Understanding Media Theory - Marxist TheoryMark Hoganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06734852991035388422noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1370114770193596135.post-11884360321866282782014-05-07T03:45:00.002-07:002014-05-07T03:45:31.598-07:00Intro <div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">The blog will outline a collection of
entries by our group that explain the Marxism theory by incorporating culture
in the media form of film that will enable a broader outlook on how Marxism is
a relevant topic to discuss how one could relate that to their own ‘reality’.
Marxism is a theory that formed after feudalism, a system that was ever present
in the medieval times that has now shifted to what one could conceptualize as a
capitalist society. Marx stated, “</span><span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">The
modern bourgeois society that has sprouted from the ruins of feudal society has
not done away with class antagonisms. It has but established new classes, new
conditions of oppression, new forms of struggle in place of the old ones”. (</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Manifesto of the Communist Party</span><span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">, 1847). The bourgeoisie also known as the ruling
class has developed and evolved to sprout new ideologies and beliefs within our
society that what once was a way to establish a class hierarchical system that
is above the Proletarians (working class). The way this was done back in
pre-modernity was from Kings and Queens ruling the Proletarians that reside
within their realms by controlling the means of production; resources, ideas or
beliefs and in contrast this could be perceived in today’s society where
governments and cooperation’s operate as the Bourgeois that exploit the
Proletarians (the mass audiences within society) by controlling the means of
production.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">The collection of blog entries will establish one
tool that the Bourgeoisie could use to exploit the mass audiences. Culture and
more specifically the media format of films with Marxist themes from within
will be identified to address the Marxist themes that are encapsulated within the
films chosen by the group and this may reveal how Marxism is a very relevant
topic in our current society because of its connection to the culture we utilize within our society.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<h1 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="background: white;">Bibliography<o:p></o:p></span></h1>
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Manifesto of the Communist Party</span></i><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">. (1847). Available
at: https://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1848/communist-manifesto/. (Accessed:
5th May 2014)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
Mark Hoganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06734852991035388422noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1370114770193596135.post-36332364929545441502014-05-07T03:40:00.000-07:002014-05-07T09:20:41.704-07:00A Critical Analysis on ‘V For Vendetta’ from a Marxist perspective By Terry Couzens<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">A ‘reality’ that desensitises the society
we live in is extracted from the ideas that are subliminally incorporated into
the same realm of existence using its culture by the rulers of modernity. To
conceptualise the film ‘V For Vendetta’ with a classical Marxist viewpoint, it
is imperative to understand the theory foremost before interconnecting the
terminologies that can be used to identify where the Marxist themes exist
within the reality in which the producers of the film potentially tried to capture
This in turn can construct an understanding of the Marxist theory and apply it
in the economically driven society we live in. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">The concept of the<span style="color: red;"> </span>Bourgeoisie and Proletarians is the foundation<s>s</s>
to understanding classical Marxism. The class struggles that exist within modernity
are relative in the way society<span style="color: red;"> </span>functions and
regulated by governments and corporations under what can be perceived as a capitalist
ideology <span style="color: red;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Marx states </span><span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">“Freeman and slave, patrician and plebeian, lord
and serf, guild-</span><span style="background: white; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">master</span><a href="https://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1848/communist-manifesto/ch01.htm#a3"><sup><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">(3)</span></sup></a><span style="background: white; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> and journeyman, in a word, oppressor and oppressed, stood in
constant opposition to one another” (Marx, 2011: 11)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">The new oppressor’s (Bourgeoisie) of today’s
societies, </span><span style="background: white; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">such as<span style="color: red;"> </span>the corporations are in a constant class struggle on how to
maintain a hierarchical position to that of the oppressed (Proletarians). <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">The plot summary of the film ‘V For
Vendetta’ is derived from the conspiracy to blow up the Houses of Parliament on
5<sup>th </sup>November 1605, also known as the Guy Fawkes Gunpowder Plot and
how the film that bases itself off of this event depicts the future of
capitalism. The film is separated with a class system that resembles the ruling
class - the capitalist government and the everyday people, the mass audience
that portrays the working class. The protagonist ‘V’ attempts to break free the
working class from the grasps of the bourgeoisie/superstructure by revealing their
ideologies, by showing the masses the ‘real’ that keeps the proletarians/base
in the false consciousness state and thus, from creating an uprising from not
only realising that they the mass were being exploited but because they desire
freedom.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #181818; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">“Since mankind's dawn, a handful of oppressors
have accepted the responsibility over our lives that we should have accepted
for ourselves. By doing so, they took our power. By doing nothing, we gave it
away. We've seen where their way leads, through camps and wars, towards the
slaughterhouse.” (V For Vendetta, 2005)</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">The Bourgeoisie control the means of production
(resources) that is used to exploit the Proletarians, as it’s these means of
production that defines the hierarchy within the economical system of today’s
societies.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">“The bourgeoisie has through its exploitation of
the world market given a cosmopolitan character to production and consumption in
every country.” (Marx, 1848) <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">The ruling class because of its high status
within the economic society pre globalization means that in </span><span style="background: white; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">today’s society, the working class
is continued to be exploited by the ruling class and it is the ruling
class<span style="color: red;"> </span>who owns the
wealth;<span style="color: red;"> </span>the
economical basis<span style="color: red;"> </span>of
the idea that we need to work to get money to survive and that hopefully one
day we will become rich enough not to need to work to survive. This is
the ideology<span style="color: red;"> </span>that was
first set about and then constantly recycled by the bourgeoisie.</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">“If the capitalist mode of production presupposes
this definite social form of the conditions of production, so does it reproduce
it continually. It produces not merely the material products, but reproduces
continually the production relations in which the former are produced” (Marx,
1967: 879 citied by Terray, 1975: 90)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">The means of production that would once exist to
control the working class such as land is now done through alternatives such as
media consumption of ideas and it’s from owning these means of production that
can keep the mass audiences in a false consciousness that make them unaware or
idle to act on the exploitation by the ruling class that keeps them in this
oppressed state. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">“In
the culture industry this imitation finally becomes absolute. Having ceased to
be anything but style, it reveals the latter’s secret: obedience to the social
hierarchy.”</span></i><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> (Adorno,
1997:131)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Marxism references a system that uses
the terms ‘Base’ and ‘Superstructure’. “The superstructure is characterised by
the presence of an ideological factor: it consists of all institutions, except
the directly economic-productive or the solely existential, as well as the
artistic, literacy, scientific, religious, and political activities”
(Rossi-Landi, 1990: 60)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">The Bourgeois utilise the tools
created by television to establish their ideologies to desensitise the mass
audiences. The governments and corporations that form the ‘Superstructure’ acts
as the hierarchical presence within the system that feed these ideologies to
the ‘Base’. The ‘Base’ consists of the mass audiences that are constant awe of
trying to establish themselves as the ‘Superstructure’. This is also known as
false consciousness, as the process of recycling different ideologies and
beliefs to the ‘Base’ gives the idea of becoming something more than they are,
a ‘reality’ that won’t ever materialise from the dreams in which the oppressors
cant conceptualise the differences from afar and within. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">A scene within the film shows the
government covering up the attack on the building that was orchestrated by the
protagonist by claiming it was a planned demolition that had unexpected
complications. Prior to this, these oppressors were in conference claiming ‘V’
as a terrorist because they are concerned with how this individual can unify
the masses and cause a revolution against the capitalist society they reside in
as he is oppressing the notion of a superstructure. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">“This is the BTN, our job is to report
the news, not fabricate it. That’s the government’s job”. (V For Vendetta,
2005) <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">The quote refers to the conversation
the producer of the news station has where he claims that the bourgeoisie use
media (means of production) to drive the false consciousness to the mass
audiences.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">It could be perceived that the masses are victims
of an alienated capitalist society that is split between two classes. The class
struggles of being tied to an economically driven society in which the ruling
class that controls or owns the resources (means of production) create and
constantly recycle ideologies to drive the superstructure principle which means
that the working class or the ‘Base’ as it is also known, can only identity
themselves as their own separate group within society. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">The constant class struggle that
continues to present itself in society today is always on the verge of
revolution but due to the ideologies that shield our outlook on the world we
live in, puts the revolution into a recycled state of sleep that is only waiting
to be lifted. In the film, ‘V’ acts as a savoir to the masses. Its this ‘Base’
through ‘V’ that enables a unified front against capitalism in overthrowing the
government by martyring himself and giving these masses an idea of hope and
freedom. “You cannot kiss an idea, cannot touch it or hold it, ideas cannot
bleed or hold pain and they cannot laugh.” (V For Vendetta, 2005) implies that
although ‘V’ as previously mentioned martyrs himself for his belief of freeing
the people from the false consciousness constructed by the oppressors, the
legacy he left behind, by showing the masses the ‘real’ in how they were
oppressed created a revolution against the government that they are free people
and that ideas will always be free and can never die.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">As previously stated the masses
gathered to unify against the government to show that they are free people and
gather to watch the houses of parliament (and ‘V’) get blown up. This scene in
the film reveals that the people that unified on the belief of ‘V’ and him revolting
against the governments exploitation and control over the people are now ‘free’
from the restraints of the ruling class.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #181818; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">“People shouldn't be afraid of their
government. Governments should be afraid of their people.” (V For
Vendetta, 2005)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #181818; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The film sets itself up to release its own idea
that ties in with the film and the Marxist views to us ‘the mass audiences’
that consume the media in our own ‘reality’. And that is like it has already
been mentioned, the notion that governments exist to regulate society, not to
rule society. Whilst this could be perceived as we are separated from our
freedom in a sense, we must not forget that true freedom is knowledge.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #181818; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">“Knowledge, like air, is vital to life. Like
air, no one should be denied it.” (V For Vendetta, 2005)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #181818; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">An idea within society is not freedom, for
there to be true freedom, many ideas must exist. When globalization can coexist
with more than one idea, the overarching idea within some economic societies e.g.
Capitalism as it could be perceived, then there will always be an alienation
within that society and because of this, the working classes (‘base’) of today
will never truly be free people and escape from the idea of a hierarchical
system, the ‘base’ and ‘superstructure’.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #181818; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">It is explained earlier, that the bourgeoisie
feed ideas that create the false consciousness to desensitise the masses and
create the exploitation within many societies. The overarching idea that can be
perceived to be, not only present within the film ‘V For Vendetta’ but also in
relation to many societies of modernity is Capitalism. This idea is a construct
of the Bourgeoisie and if the masses come to a realisation and break free from
the hypnotic state we are apart of whether they are not knowing of or ignorant
then they can create an alternative such as a revolution that could change the
class system dynamics to create an equality or a free society where there is
not just one overarching idea but many.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #181818; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">“Behind this mask there is more than just
flesh. Beneath this mask there is an idea... and ideas are
bulletproof.” (V For Vendetta, 2005) The protagonist ‘V’ in the film
addresses the notion that ideas are immortal and as stated above it is from
this idea of revolution, the idea to be free from oppression that will one day
become a reality.</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #2b2b2b; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">“A commodity is an object full of theological,
even metaphysical, niceties. Its presence always reflects an invisible
transcendence.” (Zizek: 2014) Zizek describes ‘Commodity Fetishism and by this
pinpoints the idea that an item transcends from an object, an item that is
classified as the ‘real’. He uses the example of ‘Coca-`Cola in the film
‘Pervert’s Guide To Ideology’ and explains that this item is just a drink but
it can change into an ‘idea’ because the taste of the drink itself can be more
satisfying based on climate and temperature of the drink itself. Expanding on
this the item can then develop further by not just an individual thought but
into a social ideological construct. In the film ‘V For Vendetta’, the
protagonist ‘V’ wears a mask to cover his identity. As his actions against the
government in revealing their actions of exploiting the masses unfolds. At the
end of the film the masses unify and wear the same mask that ‘V’ himself wears.
The symbol of the mask turns into a proletarian fetish, the symbol of the mask,
that being of ‘V’ and what he was trying to accomplish by blowing up the house
of parliament i.e. by removing the false consciousness state that the masses
were put under by the government and on some ‘reality’ create a freedom where
ideas could exist, shows that this symbol stands for revolution. This in todays
society contrasts with the group ‘Anonymous’ a group of people that claim they
stand against the Capitalist society we live in by hacking the digital media
spaces on the internet by using the same ‘V’ masks to cover their identities
and represent themselves as Proletarians fighting for a revolution.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">“The first step to freedom is not just
to change reality to feed your dreams. It’s to change the way you dream and
again this hurts because all satisfactions we have come from our dreams.”
(Zizek: 2014)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Zizek states that our society is
driven on dreams and desires. When we remove them, this creates a paradox
because an outlook into today’s society could suggest that the masses rely on
the recycling of bourgeoisie ideologies; dreams and desires, and it is this
what grants us the satisfactions. By removing these ideologies and thus, creating
freedom, it would be difficult to accomplish as the ‘reality’ that we exist
upon is co-dependent on these notions of happiness that also imprison them.<span style="color: red;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #181818; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">“Happiness is the most insidious prison of
all.” (V For Vendetta, 2005)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #181818; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The film does incorporate the Marxist themes
thoroughly and this can translate not only into a comprehensive understanding
of Marxism but also how currently our own societies could relate the notion of
capitalism and could spark revolution if the masses become sensitised to the
exploitation they feel they are apart of. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #181818; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">“I shall die here. Every last inch of me shall
perish. Except one. An inch. It's small and it's fragile and it's the only
thing in the world worth having. We must never lose it, or sell it, or give it
away. We must never let them take it from us.” (V For Vendetta, 2005)</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #181818; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">A highlighted concept that flows throughout the
film, as suggested above, and elevates itself to something more than transient,
is that ideas are everlasting. An idea will pass through time and out live the
societies of globalization and so a dream or desire of freedom that imprisons
us because of our own satisfactions will continue to remain in a hypnotic state
within our consciousness. An idea that could one day set the foundations of a
revolution by the masses that will create freedom.</span><span style="background: white; color: red; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<h2 align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 16.0pt;">Bibliography<o:p></o:p></span></h2>
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Books:<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Adorno,
T. Horkheimer, M (1997).<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i>Dialectic
of Enlightment</i>. London: Verso. p121-145.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Balibar, E (2007). <i>The Philosophy of
Marx</i>. 2nd ed. London: Verso. p59.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Bloch, M (1975). <i>Marxist Analyses and
Social Anthropology</i>. London: Malaby Press. p90.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Marx, K. Engels, F (2011). <i>The Communist Manifesto. </i>London: Penguin Books Ltd. p11,<i> </i></span><i><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Rossi-Landi, F (1990). <i>Marxism and
Ideology</i>. Translated By Griffin, R. Oxford: Clarendon Press. p5.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Digital:<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Marx, K. (1848). <i>Manifesto of the
Communist Party.</i> Available:
https://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1848/communist-manifesto/. Last
accessed 5th May 2014.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Zizek, S. (2014). <i>Pervert’s Guide to
Ideology.</i> Available: http://www.critical-theory.com/tag/perverts-guide-to-ideology/.
Last accessed 5th May 2014.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Film:<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<i><span style="background: #EFEFEF; border: none windowtext 1.0pt; color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0cm; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; padding: 0cm;">V For Vendetta</span></i><span style="background: #EFEFEF; color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">, 2005. [DVD] James McTeigue, London, United
Kingdom. Potsdam, Germany: Warner Bros. Pictures.</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Mark Hoganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06734852991035388422noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1370114770193596135.post-20940362641400132152014-05-07T03:36:00.000-07:002014-05-07T03:36:23.736-07:00Children of Men by Mark Hogan<div class="MsoNormal">
In this essay I intend to carry out a study on the
significance of Marxist theory within the film industry. Firstly, the definition
and interpretation of Marxism needs to be outlined to further better understand
“Because every film is part of the economic system it is also a part of the
ideological system, for ‘cinema’ and ‘art’ are branches of ideology.”(JEAN-LUC).
Pre-occupied with the concept of
cultural materialism, a social class is defined, by the relations of the means
of production to the members within. Under a capitalist society the working
class own their capacity to work, by the ability they have to sell their own
labour.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Marxist theory emerged during the 19<sup>th</sup> Century.
First started by the works of a philosopher named Karl Marx. Marxism is defined
solely as a theory that highlights the struggle within the social/ financial
class system and how it shapes the western society. Marxism is a social system
which has a dominant feature, of the public ownership based on the means of
production, exchange and distribution. The working class also known as the
Proletariat, have only a capacity to work by which they can only sell their own
labour. This can further be backed by the stated by Worsley (Worsley, 1982, p.
63) “leaving aside these ‘extra – economic’ differences, the ‘sectional’ bonds
that divide the working class – levels of skill, difference of industry, degree
of monopolistic ‘job – control’ , I.e. via the ‘closed shop’”. This expands on
the notion that a person’s class is defined by their ability to work within a
particular field of work, if they cannot work within this particular field then
they would find it hard to work elsewhere based on the higher class controlling
which jobs people can or cannot do. Marx also defined that the class of a
person is solely based on the relations of the people in a family and by the
ability that family has in means of production.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Most of Marxism today has a particular concern surrounding
the internal economics based within the socialist government, and also around
how the proletariat taken advantage of by the upper classes to satisfy their
own gain. Religion is another cause for concern under with Marxism. As mentioned by Raymond William (William,
R. 1995, p.64) wrote that “Religion is the sign of the oppressed creature, the
feeling of a heartless world, and the soul of soulless circumstances.” Based on
this, you can see religion as a form of reaction to human suffering within a
unfair society.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Since the time Karl Marx brought about the Marxist theory, it
has also spread into films that are shown globally for the mass audience. Going
back to some of the earliest Marxist filmmaker’s, people such as Sergei
Eisenstein, would use the form of film media to criticise the ideology and the
traditional structure of Hollywood. As the world progresses in the technology
used within society the different ways in which industries such as Hollywood
can adapt and use the working class to work changes as stated by Christine “As
technology and skills progress, society adapts to cater for such advances. This
leads to a complete restructuring of the economic class relations because the
‘Forces of production’ determine the relations of production” (Christine, E. 2011,
p.85). Filmakers like Sergei would argue that Hollywood films ideologies are
used to promote the idea of the middle class also known as bourgeois based in
America, Filmakers like Sergei intentionally purposely separated themselves from
the Hollywood narrative structure, so they could show to the mass audience how
they saw the film industry and the political indoctrination spread globally. <o:p></o:p></div>
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The means in which society produces its ‘existence’ is
ultimately determined by the shape of the society by political, cultural and
social forms.<span style="color: red;"> </span>It is also by this that future
development is also affected. It is this based relationship that brings out the
notion of a ‘base’ and ‘superstructure’, the base is made up of the people who
sell their work through labour whereas the superstructure is defined by the political,
education, legal areas“. In order to apply the idea of the ‘base and the
superstructure’ to the field of film, all cultural artefacts must be examined
in relation to their historical mode of production. Marx and Engels believed
that the dominant thinking of any specific time would display the ideas of the
ruling class. It is those in positions of power who attempt to make the workers
conform to their ideas.” (John, S. 1997, p.60)<o:p></o:p></div>
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The film I am using to discuss about the significance of
using the Marxist theory is going to be Children of Men (2006) directed by
Alfonso Cuaron. The film itself has a vast symbolist story, it portrays a world
in which the female population has become infertile and only the United Kingdom
remains as a society while the rest have descended into anarchy. Due to the
chaos around the globe, there has been an influx of immigration to the point
where it has become unsustainable, causing the British government to pursue
extreme methods to holt the immigration influx, even if they are arriving
illegally or by legal means. The film
brings about the concern of an oppression and abuse of the masses from a
centralised government fixated on the power to control. It takes a cultured examination
of society, showing that societies everywhere are made up from a variety of
different cultures. This is aiming to present that parts of society accumulate
unbalanced amount of representation within the media and in the process shaping and defining consensus to obscure the roots
of genuine conflict.<o:p></o:p></div>
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The world in which is presented by Children of Men (2006),
the middle class mass have accumulated more power in Britain since the 19<sup>th</sup>
century, the unprecedented powers the bourgeois have gained allow them to
invade the privacy of the proletariat. The immigrants that have swarmed to
Britain are rounded up and crammed into cages to be transported to ‘Bexhill’ –
which is a prison camp to hold the immigrants, because of the fall with women
fertility due to the fall the government forces women to have a fertility test
which is deemed illegal to avoid, and the basic of human rights such as privacy
and transports are restricted by the government so they can hunt illegal
immigrants. A notion stated by Paul “The ability of individuals to think and
act freely, imaginatively and creatively – to be human, as the Frankfurt
theorist saw it – was being crushed by a relentless all – encompassing
capitalist machine” (Hodkinson, P. 2011, p. 108) it emphasises the concept of a
capitalist state forcing the working class to bend to their will. The film’s
opening scene presents the main character bearing witness to a supposed
terrorist bombing by a fringe group
called 'The Fishes'. As the film progresses it is later known that the
terrorist attacks are actually caused by the government to cause fear to spread
among the populace about a group representing themselves as a section of the working
class living up to a different ideology. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Children of Men (2006) also hold a large amount of religious
imagery and language. Theo Faron (the main character) has been dragged into a
plot to safe guard and transport an unborn child, the significance of this
unborn child would cause hope to come back to the masses who for years had
lived in depression in the notion that there would be no new-borns, he would
have to take the unborn to a safe haven only known as the ‘The Human Project’
but it is unknown at the time if such a place actually exists or not. The name
Theo does have a religious meaning being ‘God’s gift’. Also the very scene in
which Theo finds out that the Kee (the pregnant woman) is carrying a child, is
when they are on a farm and she is standing in the barn surrounded by the
animals. It is also during this scene when one of the corrupt group members,
also becomes aware of Kee being pregnant and repeatedly shouting ‘Jesus
Christ’. It is up to this point that
there has been no presence of religion this can be viewed as a alienation based
on religion “Religious alienation as such occurs only in the sphere of
consciousness, in the inner life of man” (2002, p.136) While not as obvious it
is also seen during several scenes where there are characters shown washing
their feet, while to most that would seem ordinary but it is also is seen as a
religious exercise within certain aspects of Christianity and Islam. It is due
to these noticeable and subtle parts that are shown to the audience that
present an extra dimension of
importance on the existence of this unborn child.<o:p></o:p></div>
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The film is immersed with the concept of class struggle,
which is the main aspect within the Marxist theory. The fishes Don’t want to make the pregnancy
known to the public as they believe that the government would refuse to admit
that after 18 years the first baby to be born is to an illegal immigrant, it is
believed that the government would prefer to present to the public that the
immigrant’s child is to instead a ‘rich black lady’. Although as the film progresses it is shown
that the character Julian’s death is actually caused by the Fishes, this was
done so they could use the baby to become a political pawn for the uprising. Marxist
theory analyses a society in the progression it makes towards Communism. By
this stage of the film the Fishes are now aware of their loss, of their
alienation.<o:p></o:p></div>
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While there is class struggle present in the film it stems
towards democracy, there can be a comparison made between this struggle and
hypothetical one towards Communism. It is only when specific parts of society’s
situation gets to the stage where people become desperate and then attempt to
start a revolution. During the closing scenes it is shown that fighter jets fly
overhead giving to the impression that the current revolution will fall as the
jets bomb the camp. Despite this, Theo and Kee are shown escaping this brings
out the signification that there is still hope. There is shown a boat, which
will take Theo and Kee to the proclaimed ‘Human Project’ location, the boat
itself is called ‘The Tomorrow’ with these two combined it presents the
audience with a sense of hope, as it shows the potential end towards the
anarchy swarming the world this in turn could lead towards an end to class
struggle for a time, but it could also in turn form a different form of class
struggle. <o:p></o:p></div>
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In conclusion, the analysis of<span style="color: red;"> </span>Marxism
within the film industry, can be used to provide relevant and practical to
perform a deeper form of understanding within the text. The film Children of
Men (2006) is immersed with political agendas such as class struggle and a
central focus with the mass media, this film is ideal to be used to analysis
and criticised, but this theory would not be able to be used on the vast
majority of films presented to the world either from Hollywood or by an
amateur. Within the film industry it
would be better to apply a semiotic analysis and criticism as it can be applied
to any type of story of mode of storytelling in a film.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<h1>
Bibliography <o:p></o:p></h1>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="background: white;">BUFORD, T. O., & OLIVER,
H. H. (2002).</span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 107%;"> </span></span><i><span style="background: white;">Personalism
revisited: its proponents and critics</span></i><span style="background: white;">.
Amsterdam, Rodopi.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Christine, E & Ruth, D (2011)
Understanding film theory, <span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">Palgrave Macmillan</span> <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Cuaron, A. (2006) Children of Men Directed by Alfonso Cuaron
UK: Universal.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Hodkinson, P (2011) Media, Culture and society an
introduction. Sage Publications Ltd<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
JEAN-LUC COMOLLI AND JEAN NARBONI,
"CINEMA/IDEOLOGY/CRITICISM" from: Braudy/Cohen 1999 <a href="http://faculty.washington.edu/cbehler/teaching/coursenotes/camideolcrit.html">http://faculty.washington.edu/cbehler/teaching/coursenotes/camideolcrit.html</a>
(accessed: 2/05/14)<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Storey, J (2012). Cultural Theory And Popular Culture. 6th
ed. Essex: Pearson Education Limited.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Wayne, M (2003) Marxism and media
studies key concepts and contemporary trends. Pluto Press<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
William, R (1995) Religion: A Humanist
Interpretation. Routledge<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
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<br /></div>
Mark Hoganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06734852991035388422noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1370114770193596135.post-15854869802773649602014-05-07T03:00:00.001-07:002014-05-07T09:20:04.061-07:00Marxism in Coming to America By Sachin Bhachu<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">Coming to America is an American love comedy directed by John
Landis, it was released into cinemas across the United States in 1988. The story line was created by Eddie Murphy, in which he also starred in the lead
role. The film is about a Prince who turns 21 and as part of tradition in his
country; he is set up to get married to a woman he does not know. The Prince,
who objects to this, insists he is allowed to find his own bride, one who will
love him for who he is, not one who will obey his every command because of his
royal status. Marxist views can have affect on lifestyle, with It’s purpose
being to fight for the freedom of the working class, also known as the
proletariat, who are seen to be under domination by the upper class, the
Bourgeoisie. The Marxist class system theory has a big part in this film, as
there is a lot of discrimination based on social status. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Gill Sans";">Eddie Murphy plays the role of Akeem Joffer, an African Prince,
Son of King Jaffe Joffer, ruler of Zamunda. As the prince has turned 21, it is
time for him to marry his princess. His father King Jaffe Joffer, takes it upon
himself to find a suitable wife for his son the Prince. He finds a woman, one who
has been brought up to marry a prince. “Since the day she was born she was
taught to walk and speak and think as a Queen” (Coming to America, 1988) . However
Prince Akeem has his own plans, to find someone who loves him for who he is,
not his riches. “But when I marry, I want the woman to love me for who I am,
not because of what I am” (Coming to America, 1988). From a Marxist
perspective, you can see how the class system comes into place here. Prince
Akeem is of higher class, royalty, however he does not want to marry somebody
who wants him for his wealth and royal status, or somebody that his father has
found for him who will also be of upper class. Prince Akeem widens his searches
for a bride by going to America, and posing as a proletarian. They choose to go
to Queens in New York, a part of New York that is full of working class
citizens. Akeem and his friend also servant, Semmi; attempt to blend in with
the American culture, so they ditch their suits and fur overcoats and replace
them with caps and American baseball jackets. The Prince wastes no time in
searching for his perfect bride, so him and Semmi hit the bars around Queens,
however they are unsuccessful. Their luck does change soon after; at “Black
Awareness Week” he sets his eyes upon a girl called Lisa McDowell. Akeem and
Semmi take jobs at McDowell’s fast food restaurant, as Lisa’s father Cleo
McDowell owns it, this is the perfect way for Akeem to get acquainted with
Lisa. It will also help them to blend in more with the working class. Spending
most days working with Lisa, this was the perfect way for him to make Lisa fall
in love with Akeem, and not the Prince.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">Cleo McDowell, Lisa’s father, is an arrogant bourgeoisie. Owner of
McDowell’s fast food restaurant, and owner of a large home, he thinks he is
superior to anyone who is not as wealthy as him. This affects the way he treats
people, for example the way he treats Lisa’s two love interests throughout the
film. Darryl and Akeem, Cleo knows that Darryl is very wealthy so he treats him
with the utmost respect, he is desperate for Lisa to marry Darryl because he is
also a bourgeoisie. Eventually Cleo even agrees for Darryl and his daughter
Lisa to get married, without consulting Lisa.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Gill Sans";">Lisa’s boyfriend, Darryl Jenks, thinks he is gods gift to women.
As well as being filthy rich, he is a model and heir to his fathers business
‘Soul Glo’. This makes him feel as if he is above every working class person,
including Akeem and Semmi. He treats them with no respect and insults Akeem on
many occasions. This is an example of how social status can have such an affect
on people’s ego, and how power and capital make the bourgeoisie believe they
are in control of society. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">Lisa McDowell is one who does not care about how rich somebody is
or what they possess. After getting to know Akeem better she begins to realise
how down to earth he is, compared to her self obsessed boyfriend Darryl. After
spending some time with Akeem, she breaks up with Darryl and starts to date
Akeem. The incognito Prince realizes he has found everything he has been
looking for in a woman, he has found the woman he wants to make his Princess.
Lisa likes Akeem even though she thinks he is extremely poor, unaware that he
is actually heir to the throne of Zamunda. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">Semmi is struggling to adapt to such a low lifestyle, he feels
alienated in such a different environment than what he Is used to; even though
he is Akeem’s servant, he is used to a life of luxuries. He sends a telegram
requesting further funds from the King, this alarms him and forces him to fly
to America to take his son back home. King Jaffe Joffer is angered to find out
his son has been working. “MY SON WORKS?” (Coming to America, 1988) As he
believes a Prince should not have to lift a finger. It is when he pays a visit
to McDowells, he meets Cleo McDowell, and explains to him that Akeem is a
Prince, and heir to the throne of Zamunda. Before this point Cleo had treated
Akeem like a peasant, and did not agree with him seeing his daughter Lisa.
However after finding out he is not a poor working class man, but a Prince with
wealth and power, Mr McDowell’s feelings towards Akeem drastically change. A
clear example of how title and capital can change an arrogant bourgeoisie on a
person, Mr McDowell’s money-orientated way of thinking judges a person straight
away off their social status rather than who the person is deep down. King
Jaffe Joffer and Cleo McDowell are very similar in how they judge people using
Marx’s class theory. If they believe somebody is beneath them, they are quick
to let them know who is on top. When the King and Mr McDowell have a slight
argument about Lisa and Akeem in Mr McDowell’s house, the King explains why
Akeem cannot marry her “Oh come now, our son cannot consort with such a girl”
(Coming to America, 1988) this upsets Mr McDowell as it makes him feel as if he
is being undermined by the King. A battle of the higher class, as they both try
to retain their dignity, King Jaffe Joffer tries to pay off Mr McDowell for his
inconvenience “Shall we say one million American dollars?” (Coming to America,
1988) as it is nothing to him. After Cleo McDowell rejects, the king offers two
million dollars; Cleo again refrains from being demoralized, “You haven’t got
enough money to buy my daughter off” (Coming to America, 1988). Here you can
see how the bourgeoisie's believe capital brings them power, and how they can dominate
the proletariat's. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Gill Sans";">Further on into the film comes a significant moment, Prince Akeem
chases after Lisa as she storms out of her home in anger of being lied to.
Akeem catches her on the subway and explains to her why he did not tell her he
was a Prince, “I wanted you to love me for who I am” (Coming to America, 1988).
She questions who he really is, he explains nothing is different; “Should it
matter that I am a prince” (Coming to America, 1988). Lisa understands, as she
is not someone to judge by social status or capital. King Jaffe Joffer finds it
difficult to accept his son falling in love with a proletarian, but allows a
break in tradition to make his son happy, he arranges for Lisa and Akeem to
marry in Zamunda as a surprise, as Akeem thought he had lost her. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">This film is a great example of how capital, social status or
title can have an affect on how people can be treated differently. Upper class people,
who believe to be in control of the working class, can interfere with everyday
life. Such as Akeem and Lisa being together, if you eliminate social status,
there would be no problems. Marxist theories suggest that the proletariat are
slaves of labour for the bourgeoisie. They come to think they are a service to
them, in exchange for wage, so they can attain the things they are lead to
believe they desire. However the proletariat are brainwashed into forgetting
the power they obtain, the bourgeoisie are the minority and they can be
overruled by the proletariat's to make the world a fairer place. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Gill Sans";">Bibliography<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Gill Sans";">Coming to America (1988) Directed by John Landis [Film] Paramount
Pictures<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Gill Sans";">‘Karl
Marx Theory of Ideas’</span></i><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Gill Sans";"> (1955) Cambridge University Press, John
Torrance<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=HKc7ot06WD0C&pg=PP195&dq=karl+marx+class+theory&hl=en&sa=X&ei=nqNpU8q_DcaJPa6fgJAF&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=karl%20marx%20class%20theory&f=false"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Gill Sans";">http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=HKc7ot06WD0C&pg=PP195&dq=karl+marx+class+theory&hl=en&sa=X&ei=nqNpU8q_DcaJPa6fgJAF&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=karl%20marx%20class%20theory&f=false</span></a>
(Accessed – 4<sup>th</sup> May 2014)<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Gill Sans";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Gill Sans";">https://www.marxists.org/reference/subject/philosophy/help/marxism.htm
- <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Gill Sans";">Andy Blunden </span>(Accessed – 28<sup>th</sup> April 2014)<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Gill Sans";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0094898/"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Gill Sans";">http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0094898/</span></a>
(Accessed – 4<sup>th</sup> May 2014)<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Gill Sans";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Mark Hoganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06734852991035388422noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1370114770193596135.post-82559709570254841022014-05-06T15:12:00.000-07:002014-05-06T15:32:57.421-07:00Marxism in Fight Club by Stuart Daley<div align="center" class="Body" style="text-align: center;">
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<i><span lang="EN-US">Fight Club</span></i><span lang="EN-US"> (1999)
is David Fincher</span><span lang="EN-US">’</span><span lang="EN-US">s movie adaptation of
Chuck Palahniuk</span><span lang="EN-US">’</span><span lang="EN-US">s novel. The film is
about one person</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica;">’</span><span lang="EN-US">s attempt to overcome
the alienation of himself. He achieves this by turning his whole life up-side
down and subconsciously following his inner feelings to do the things he has
always wanted to do but has thought it inappropriate and a great risk to his
safety and security. The narrator (Edward Norton) is </span><span lang="EN-US">“</span><span lang="EN-US">an insomniac office worker looking for a way to change his life</span><span lang="EN-US">”</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"; mso-hansi-font-family: Helvetica;"> </span><span lang="EN-US">he achieves this
after he </span><span lang="EN-US">“</span><span lang="EN-US">crosses paths with a
devil-may-care soap maker and they form an underground fight club that evolves
into something much, much more.</span><span lang="EN-US">”</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"; mso-hansi-font-family: Helvetica;">
</span><span lang="EN-US">(<i>IMDB</i>, 1999)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">Fight Club has strong links with Marxism
throughout the film in many different aspects, both supporting and disproving
their theories and beliefs. During the film the narrator starts off as a
card-carrying member of capitalist society, who takes pride in his appearance
and his possessions until his whole ideology of what life should be is taken
from under his feet when his apartment explodes. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">He believed his apartment was his life and was
what everybody should aim to achieve. This is linked with the Marxist theory
that the bourgeoisie (upper class) force the proletariat (working class) into
believing that they should go through life being a </span><span lang="EN-US">“</span><span lang="EN-US">slave to the Ikea nesting instinct</span><span lang="EN-US">”</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"; mso-hansi-font-family: Helvetica;"> </span><span lang="EN-US">(<i>Fight Club, </i>1999). The bourgeoisie
use this to keep control of the working class, convincing them they should
continue working for a wage to be able to afford the material everyday things
they are lead to believe are necessary.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">According to Marxist doctrine, the proletariat
are prevented from realizing the power they possess because the bourgeoisie
heavily impose their ideology, making them believe the ruling class</span><span lang="EN-US">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"; mso-hansi-font-family: Helvetica;"> </span><span lang="EN-US">ideals of normality (<i>Dino,</i>
2011). The narrator believes he is living the </span><span lang="EN-US">‘</span><span lang="EN-US">correct</span><span lang="EN-US">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"; mso-hansi-font-family: Helvetica;"> </span><span lang="EN-US">life until his apartment explodes, destroying everything he held
dear. It is at this point that he turns to Tyler Durden (Brad Pitt) and he
starts to realize the potential he possesses and the power he has over the
bourgeoisie. In Durden he sees the perfect life, the life with no restraints
and nobody controlling him; this gives him the power to start a revolution.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">His ideas start out small, with moving from his
catalogue home to an abandoned house miles away from anybody else. He then
continues to disfigure himself and his well-dressed appearance he originally
has; this is the start of his uprising and he realizes the oppression from the
upper classes. All his working life has been controlled by his boss, giving him
statistics and equations not only to work by, but how to live. The equation he
is using in his field of work, </span><span lang="EN-US">“</span><span lang="EN-US">You
take the population of vehicles in the field (A) and multiply it by the
probable rate of failure (B), then multiply the result by the average cost of
an out-of-court settlement (C). A times B times C equals X. This is what it
will cost if we don</span><span lang="EN-US">’</span><span lang="EN-US">t initiate a recall.
If X is greater than the cost of a recall, we recall the cars and no one gets
hurt. If X is less than the cost of a recall, then we don</span><span lang="EN-US">’</span><span lang="EN-US">t recall</span><span lang="EN-US">”</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"; mso-hansi-font-family: Helvetica;"> </span><span lang="EN-US">(Palahniuk, 1996, p. 30-31) shows the thought
process of the money hungry bourgeoisie who will risk the proletariats</span><span lang="EN-US">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"; mso-hansi-font-family: Helvetica;"> </span><span lang="EN-US">lives in favour of
more capital for them.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">The narrators counter-part, Durden, starts to
get his own back on upper classes. Firstly single handedly, by urinating in
their soup bowls and other ways of contaminating their food in the restaurant
he is a waiter at. It is in this time that the narrator starts to see how the
richer people live and describes the party guests as </span><span lang="EN-US">“</span><span lang="EN-US">titans and their gigantic wives</span><span lang="EN-US">”</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"; mso-hansi-font-family: Helvetica;"> </span><span lang="EN-US">who </span><span lang="EN-US">“</span><span lang="EN-US">drink barrels of champagne and bellow at each other wearing diamonds
bigger than I feel</span><span lang="EN-US">”</span><span lang="EN-US">. The guests </span><span lang="EN-US">“</span><span lang="EN-US">lift forks of butterflied lamb chop, each
bite the size of a whole pig, each mouth a tearing Stonehenge of ivory</span><span lang="EN-US">”</span><span lang="EN-US"> (<i>Fight Club,</i> 1999). He begins to
see that the bourgeoisie </span><span lang="EN-US">“</span><span lang="EN-US">just
want to see you run around for their money</span><span lang="EN-US">…</span><span lang="EN-US">because they know they can</span><span lang="FR">’</span><span lang="EN-US">t threaten you with the tip, to them you</span><span lang="FR">’</span><span lang="EN-US">re just a cockroach</span><span lang="EN-US">”</span><span lang="EN-US"> which infuriates him and makes him want to
bring everybody to the same level of class and wealth, similar to Marx</span><span lang="EN-US">’</span><span lang="EN-US">s ideas.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">The narrator and Durden start to form an
underground fight club, for members who want to feel a part of something and
enjoy the rebelliousness of the fighting and permanently marking your skin. The
fight club grows in numbers rapidly as more and more people find out (contrary
to the first rule which is </span><span lang="EN-US">“</span><span lang="EN-US">Don</span><span lang="EN-US">’</span><span lang="EN-US">t talk about Fight Club</span><span lang="EN-US">”</span><span lang="EN-US">) (<i>Fight Club,</i> 1999). To begin with
this club is just somewhere for the working class to go to get away from their
stress and emotions from the day, however it soon starts to turn into a unified
following, doing as Durden commands. The first time there is a clash between
classes is when the owner of the bar they</span><span lang="EN-US">’</span><span lang="EN-US">re using demands they leave because it is his property. This is the
beginning of the proletariat revolution as Durden confronts the owner,
something that wouldn</span><span lang="EN-US">’</span><span lang="EN-US">t have been expected,
and allows him to repeatedly punch him and just laughs it off. Eventually he
fights back and is allowed to continue using the basement; another Marxist
philosophy of using violence to get to where they want to achieve.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">At this point the fight club begins to turn into
a revolutionary group, it spread worldwide and Durden starts up Project Mayhem
without the authorization of the narrator. The proletariat begin to realize
that </span><span lang="EN-US">“</span><span lang="EN-US">we</span><span lang="FR">’</span><span lang="EN-US">re everyone you depend
on. We</span><span lang="FR">’</span><span lang="EN-US">re
the people who do your laundry and cook your food and serve your dinner. We
make your bed. We guard you while you</span><span lang="FR">’</span><span lang="EN-US">re asleep. We drive the ambulances. We direct your call. We are
cooks and drivers and we know everything about you. We process your insurance
claims and credit card charges. We control every part of your life</span><span lang="EN-US">”</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"; mso-hansi-font-family: Helvetica;"> </span><span lang="EN-US">and understand the
true strength they have. They begging to comprehend that they have part of the
mass majority of citizens, the bourgeoisie are the minority that only have the
capital, not the skill that they need from them. Project mayhem is set to bring
the mass together to reform the class system and rebuild society from the
bottom; where everybody is equal. However to do this they start to use
strategies that contradict Marxist theory.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">Durden gives the </span><span lang="EN-US">“</span><span lang="EN-US">space monkeys</span><span lang="EN-US">”</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"; mso-hansi-font-family: Helvetica;">
</span><span lang="EN-US">tasks to do to begin the revolution and they get more
and more violent. The main task they are set is to go out and start a fight
with somebody. From a Marxist perspective this is to teach them they have the
control not the upper classes. The narrator decides to go to his boss for this
task as he says earlier in the film if he could fight with anybody it would be
him. He enters the boss</span><span lang="EN-US">’</span><span lang="EN-US">s
office and confronts him, he tells him he is going to leave but still wants all
the pay; he blackmails his boss with telling everybody his secrets about the
car recalls. This is the first time the proletariat has the power over the
bourgeoisie as he knows he has the upper hand because he is needed to keep the
company running.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">Marx teaches that a consequence of capitalist
society is reification, a process which turns people into commodities; this is
something that Marxism tries to eradicate (Lukacs, 1923). Despite this Durden</span><span lang="EN-US">’</span><span lang="EN-US">s project mayhem turns all the </span><span lang="EN-US">“</span><span lang="EN-US">space monkeys</span><span lang="EN-US">”</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"; mso-hansi-font-family: Helvetica;"> </span><span lang="EN-US">into numbers and objects. They become a
slave force for his dictatorship. His aim to bring down the system by a series
of explosions that would wipe all the debt and bring all classes to the same
wealth is in line with Marxist theories, however his method is contradictory. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">The only time any of the </span><span lang="EN-US">“</span><span lang="EN-US">space monkeys</span><span lang="EN-US">”</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"; mso-hansi-font-family: Helvetica;"> </span><span lang="EN-US">become human again is when they die. We
find this out when </span><span lang="EN-US">“</span><span lang="EN-US">Big Bob</span><span lang="EN-US">”</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"; mso-hansi-font-family: Helvetica;"> </span><span lang="EN-US">dies as the narrator
is still trying to understand what the idea of the project he created in his
false consciousness is aiming to achieve. It isn't till this point in the film
that we learn Bob</span><span lang="EN-US">’</span><span lang="EN-US">s really name (Robert
Paulson), showing that although we believe it is always a Marxist idea that the
narrator and Durden are planning, they never truly stick directly to the Marxist
beliefs as everybody was still just an object along the way.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">Fight Club shows the world that they don</span><span lang="EN-US">’</span><span lang="EN-US">t need to follow the capitalist society it
currently resides within and they don</span><span lang="EN-US">’</span><span lang="EN-US">t
need to succumb to commodity fetishism. It gives them the idea that they are
the mass, the ones with the power that are dictated by the minority
bourgeoisie. If the proletariats group together they can revolutionize the
world and make it much fairer place where everybody is equal.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><u><span lang="EN-US">Bibliography<o:p></o:p></span></u></b></div>
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<i><span lang="EN-US">IMDB (1999) Available at: </span></i><span lang="EN-US"><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0137523/?ref_=nv_sr_1"><span class="Hyperlink0"><i>http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0137523/?ref_=nv_sr_1</i></span></a><i>
(Accessed 24th April 2014)<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<i><span lang="EN-US">Fight Club</span></i><span lang="EN-US"> (1999)
Directed by David Fincher [Film] Fox 2000.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="Body">
<span lang="EN-US">Felluga, Dino. "Modules on Marx: On
Ideology." Introductory Guide to Critical Theory (2011) Available at:
http://www.purdue.edu/guidetotheory/marxism/modules/marxideology.html (<i>Accessed
25th April 2014</i>)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">Palahniuk, C. (1996) <i>Fight Club. Vintage<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<i><span lang="EN-US">Lukacs, G. (</span></i><span lang="EN-US">1923<i>)
History & Class Consciousness, </i>Merlin Press<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Mark Hoganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06734852991035388422noreply@blogger.com1