[lbo-talk] Althusser, NLR and the meaning of 'Stalinism'

James Heartfield Heartfield at blueyonder.co.uk
Tue Feb 23 08:40:02 PST 2010


Mike, recounting Althusser's argument:

'to emphasise that subjectivity itself is socially constructed. That is, not only do we make history in circumstances not of our own choosing, but we interpret society with frames of reference not of our own choosing. Structures are reproduced through human activity, but often not as the intended consequences of human agency, and society is riven by structural contradictions that do not necessarily align with individuals' conceptions.'

Or, to put it another way:

Dear kindly Sergeant Krupke, You gotta understand, It's just our bringin' up-ke That gets us out of hand. Our mothers all are junkies, Our fathers all are drunks. Golly Moses, natcherly we're punks!



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