Marxist Criticism · English Literature

According to Louis Althusser, literature and the arts function primarily as part of the:

  1. Repressive State Apparatus (RSA)
  2. Ideological State Apparatus (ISA)
  3. Economic Base
  4. Dictatorship of the Proletariat
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Correct answer: Ideological State Apparatus (ISA)

Althusser distinguished between the RSA (which uses violence, like the police) and the ISA (which uses ideas, like schools and media). Literature is an ISA because it subtly reinforces dominant ideologies through narrative and representation.

Difficulty: Medium Question 3 of 20

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