The Politics of Truth: From Marx to Foucault

The concept of ideology - traditionally one of Marxism's mostpersuasive ideas - has recently been subjected to devastatingcriticism. Michele Barrett shows that Marx's own writings offer aconfusing array of possible approaches to 'ideology', which theclassical Marxist tradition consolidated as 'mystification thatserves class interests'. Barrett locates Gramsci and Althusser as key figures in thebreakdown of the classical Marxist conception - Gramsci's workpresaging the separation of class, politics and ideology found inLaclau and Mouffe, and Althusser's failing to deliver an adequateapproach to subjectivity. Foucault - replacing Marxism's 'economicsof untruth' with his own 'politics of truth' - is examined as anexemplar of post-structuralist critiques of ideology.… (more)