Marxist Literary Theory

The Marxist Literary Theory is based on the philosophy of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels which was introduced in the course of 19th century.

It is an approach which views the literary work through a lens that focuses on the ideological content of the work. According to Ashraf, through this prism, literature is seen as a reflection of society that lives in certain historical circumstances where social injustice and class distinction strongly affect life of an individual (Ashraf). It studies the character´s relationships, daily life and struggles in order to assess their place in the socio-economic system. Delahoyde explains, that literature is in fact the author´s subjective analysis of the society and class relations rather than timeless piece of art irrespective of historical setting (Delahoyde). History and art are closely intertwined.  According to Marxist literary theory, the artistic value of literary work is accomplished only if it is purposefully combines aesthetical measures with illustration of real life showing the right moral principles and humanity without any contribution of religion (Dvořáčková, 3-4).

Authors of Marxist Literary Criticism: Theodor W. Adorno (1903-1969), György Lukács (1885-1971), Walter Bendix Benjamin (1892-1940), Raymond Williams (1921-1988) (Merino).

Works cited:

Ashraf, S. What Is Marxist Criticism? Languagehumanities.org Last updated: 25 Aug 2023. Web. 26 Sept. 2023.

 https://www.languagehumanities.org/what-is-marxist-criticism.htm

Delahoyde, Michael. Marxist Criticism. Introduction to literature Michael Delahoyde. Washington State University. N.d., n.pag.. Web. 26 Sept. 2023.

https://public.wsu.edu/~delahoyd/marxist.crit.html

DVOŘÁČKOVÁ Dagmar. Projevy českého literárněvědného marxismu v meziválečném období. Bakalářská diplomová práce. Brno:  Masarykova univerzita, Filozofická fakulta, Ústav české literatury a knihovnictví, 2013. Is.muni.cz. Web. 26 Sept. 2023.

https://is.muni.cz/th/vk3ap/bc_prace_k_tisku.pdf

Merino, Laura. Marxist Literary Criticism. Prezi.com. 25 Mar. 2015. Web. 27 Sept. 2023

https://prezi.com/txsjyfjlmjra/marxist-literary-criticism/

Author of the page: Romana Koudelková