MARXIST

APPROACH
Group 2 - EAPP
Marxist Approach 2

OBJECTIVES :

At the end of this learning materials, the learners will be able to:
1. Define Marxist approach;
2. Explain how Marxist approach can be used in literary works,
3. Compose a simple critique of a given selection.
Marxist Approach 3

MARXIST APPROACH

• Began with Karl Marx, 19th century German philosopher best known for Das Kapital (1867), the seminal work of the
communist movement.
• Marx was also the first Marxist literary critic, writing critical essays in the 1830s on such writers as Johann Wolfgang von
Goethe and William Shakespeare.
• is a sociological approach to literature that viewed works of literature or art as the products of historical forces that can be
analyzed by looking at the material conditions in which they were formed.
 Marxist Approach 4

MARXIST LITERARY
CRITICISM • Also called Marxism
• Marxist Criticism is the belief that literature reflects this class struggle and
materialism.
• It looks at how literature functions in relation to other aspects of the
superstructure, particularly other articulations of ideology.
• Scrutinizes the text as "an expression of contemporary class struggle”.
• Like feminist critics, it investigates how literature can work as a force for social
change, or as a reaffirmation of existing conditions.
• Like New Historicism, it examines how history influences literature; the difference
is that Marxism focuses on the lower classes.
 Marxist Approach 5

MARXIST LITERARY
CRITICISM
• Marxist literary criticism examines the text represents and treats the
power dynamic between social classes.
• Marxist literary criticism examines economic and other class differences
in a text.
• Marxist literacy criticism examines a work by asking the following
questions :
1. Who benefits from the production and acceptance of the literary work?
2. What social class is the author part of it?
3. What social class does the work supposedly represent?
4. What values (diligence, equality, self-sacrifice,) does it reinforce, and what
values does it subvert?
5. How do characters of different social classes interact or conflict?
Marxist Approach 6

GENERAL PRINCIPLES OF MARXISM

• It promotes the idea that literature should be a tool in the revolutionary struggle.
• It attempts to clarify the relationship of literary work to social reality.
• It is political in nature.
• It aims to arrive at an interpretation of literary text in order to define the political dimensions of literary work.
• It believes that the literary work has ALWAYS a relationship to the society.
• It judges literature by how it represents the main struggles for power going on that time, how it may influence those
struggles.
• It highlights and lauds solution from the critic
 Marxist Approach
EXAMPLE OF A
MARXIST CRITICISM
The example explained the
socio- economic ideologies
which are presented in the
attitudes and behaviors of Miss
Emily, who belongs to the upper
class, and the townspeople, from
the lower class.
A Rose for Emily 7
(Source: www.scribd.com)
…in the beginning of the story, Emily Grierson is an outlier to the
general population of her town. Her life is much better than the
townspeople because she comes from a wealthy family, with a
higher income than the rest, until the death of her father happened.
Miss Emily shuts herself from society throughout the story. Despite
that, the townspeople still keep tabs on her as if they were her fans
because she is held higher than the average, middle-class
townspeople. This shows how powerful people are in the upper
class, as they are put on a pedestal which shows the difference
between the higher and the lower class.
The story also shows how the people in the upper class make their
best attempt to keep their personal life private, and away from the
general knowledge of the population. Like what Miss Emily did, she
stayed at home day by day, not seen by anyone, unless she was out
with Homer. She wanted separation from the community. She
wanted to keep her personal life from the people that she locked
herself in one of the rooms in their gigantic house…
Marxist Approach 8

MARXIST THEORY
• Is a social political and economic philosphy
• Mostly a battle between workery class and ownership class, favors communism, and communist Manifesto (Karl Marx and
Friedrich Engels
• Theory of class struggle and revolution
• It hypothesizes the struggle between social classes:
-bourgeoisie
-capitalists
-proletaint
• Portrays capitalism
 EXAMPLE OF MARXIST THEORY:

Pat-A-Cake

Pat-a-cake, pat-a-cake baker's man

Bake me a cake as fast as you can
Pat it and prick it and mark it with "B"
Put it in the oven for baby and me.
Marxist Approach 10

READ THE STORY AND FIND OUT

WHY THE NARRATOR’S FATHER HAD
TO GO TO COURT.
Marxist Approach 11

READ THE STORY AND FIND OUT

WHY THE NARRATOR’S FATHER HAD
TO GO TO COURT.
Marxist Approach 12

READ THE STORY AND FIND OUT

WHY THE NARRATOR’S FATHER HAD
TO GO TO COURT.
Marxist Approach 13

READ THE STORY AND FIND OUT

WHY THE NARRATOR’S FATHER HAD
TO GO TO COURT.
Marxist Approach 14

READ THE STORY AND FIND OUT

WHY THE NARRATOR’S FATHER HAD
TO GO TO COURT.
Marxist Approach 15

1. Who are the main characters in the story? What is their

economic status?
2. Differentiate the poor and the rich family? Who do you
think is living a more satisfying life?
3. What did the rich man charge the poor man with? Is the
case reasonable? Explain your answer.
4. What is the author trying to imply by ‘stealing the essence
of food’ and by paying with the essence of money’?
UNDERSTANDING THE TEXT :
5. What is the author claiming about the realities among
social classes in the story? Explain your answer by
comparing some instances in the story to real life context.
THANK
YOU

Group 2 - EAPP