Time and Subalternity in the Philosophy of Praxis

Abstract

The concept of «subaltern social groups» is one of Gramsci’s most influential . It has played an important role in global historical and political terminology, albeit more superficially than with any real theoretical understanding. With reference to the gradual replacement of «social classes» by «social groups», which Gramsci carried out in his Prison Notebooks, some interpretations have emerged, going so far as to speculate that Gramsci had abandoned Marxism. This article argues the opposite, i.e., that the use of «groups» embodies a growing need to stratify the analysis of subalternity. Indeed, in the Prison Notebooks, the meaning of subalternity goes far beyond the historical-sociological dimension, intersecting with politics, time, and space of state formation. By reinterpreting subalternity within the philosophy of praxis, it will thus be possible to highlight its progressive theoretical development and coherently reposition this concept within the body of Gramscian thought.