Introduction: “Ideology, Fiction, Narrative” by Terry Eagleton
“Ideology, Fiction, Narrative” by Terry Eagleton, first appeared in 1979 in the journal Social Text, is a cornerstone of Marxist literary criticism, offering a provocative exploration of the relationship between ideology, fiction, and narrative. Eagleton argues that fiction is not merely a form of escapism but a vehicle for ideological struggle, reflecting and shaping the dominant cultural and political discourses of its time. The essay’s significance lies in its ability to bridge the gap between literary analysis and social theory, demonstrating how literary texts can be read as both aesthetic objects and ideological artifacts.
Summary of “Ideology, Fiction, Narrative” by Terry Eagleton
Introduction of Ideology and its Imaginary Relation
- Ideology as “Lived” Relation: Eagleton begins by referencing Louis Althusser’s idea that ideology expresses not a direct relation to reality, but rather how individuals live that relation.
- “Ideology, then, is the expression of the relation between men and their ‘world,’ that is, the (overdetermined) unity of the real relation and the imaginary relation between them and their real conditions of existence” (p. 62).
Critique of Althusser’s Theory of Ideology
- Functionalist and Economistic Aspects: Eagleton critiques Althusser’s theory for being functionalist, reducing ideology to a mechanism for reproducing social relations, and economistic by tying it too closely to the mode of production.
- “Althusser’s theory is (a) functionalist: it presumes an ‘intention’ on the part of the social formation to reproduce itself” (p. 63).
Ideology as a Practice and Not Merely Misrecognition
- Signifying Practice and Real Relations: Ideology is seen as a set of practical relations, not just a misrecognition of reality, aligning it with a signifying practice.
- “Ideology, then, is not to be reduced to misrecognition, but is to be seen as signifying a set of practical relations with the ‘real.’” (p. 63).
Distinction Between Propositions and Practices in Ideology
- “Pseudo-statements” in Ideology: Ideological propositions are not straightforward claims about the world but function as “pseudo-statements” tied to emotional or subjective structures.
- “Ideological ‘propositions’ are only apparently propositions about the real. They are… ‘pseudo-statements,’ para- or ‘virtual’ statements” (p. 64).
Analogy Between Ideology and Literary Fiction
- Non-referential Nature of Ideology and Literature: Both ideology and literary fiction share a non-referential character, focusing not on informing about reality but on expressing lived relations and emotional structures.
- “Like ideology, literary texts frequently involve cognitive propositions, but those propositions are not present to inform us about the real” (p. 65).
Narrative as Ideology’s Form
- Narrative as Ideological: Narrative is highlighted as a potent ideological form because it provides closure and order, which are essential to the ideological function of stabilizing meaning.
- “Narrative, far from constituting some ruling-class conspiracy, is a valid and ineradicable mode of all human experience. More precisely, it is the very form of the ideological” (p. 79).
Class Struggle and Narrative
- Narrative in Class Struggle: Eagleton posits that narrative plays a central role in class struggle as it enables subjects to construct coherent identities, a crucial aspect of how ideology operates at the level of signifying practices.
- “We cannot think, act, or desire except in narrative; it is by narrative that the subject constructs that ‘sutured’ chain of signifiers which grants its true condition of division sufficient ‘imaginary’ coherence to enable it to act” (p. 78).
Modernism’s Challenge to Traditional Narrative
- Deconstructing Narrative in Modernist Texts: Modernist literature often deconstructs the traditional narrative structures, revealing the ideological underpinnings and offering an alternative, more fragmented understanding of reality.
- “The ‘modernist’ text is simply the one which has incorporated this irony as the very structuration of its discourse” (p. 77).
Conclusion: Ideology’s Inescapability in Human Experience
- Narrative’s Ongoing Role in Ideology: Eagleton concludes that while narrative is ideological, it is also inescapable and remains a fundamental way through which humans experience the world.
- “Narrative, far from disappearing with the dismantling of class society, will endure, for it is the very form in which the ideological constructs itself” (p. 80).
Literary Terms/Concepts in “Ideology, Fiction, Narrative” by Terry Eagleton
| Term/Concept | Definition/Explanation | Context in the Article |
| Ideology | A system of beliefs, values, and representations that structure human experience and mediate their relation to the material conditions of existence. | Eagleton defines ideology not as “false consciousness” but as a lived relation to reality. Ideology structures how individuals experience their world through a mix of real and imagined relations. |
| False Consciousness | The Marxist concept that people hold distorted or mistaken beliefs about their social conditions, often because of the influences of ideology. | Criticized by Eagleton, who rejects the reduction of ideology to misrecognition or distortion, focusing instead on its function as a signifying practice. |
| Signifying Practice | The process through which meaning is produced and expressed in social relations, particularly through language and symbols. | Eagleton emphasizes that ideology is not just false propositions about the real but a set of signifying practices that structure the lived relation to the real. |
| Pseudo-statements | Statements in ideological discourse that appear to refer to reality but are actually non-referential, functioning on an emotional or subjective level. | Eagleton uses this concept to describe how ideological propositions, while appearing to describe the world, actually function as “virtual” or “emotive” statements, often reflecting emotional and social relations rather than reality itself. |
| Performative Language | Language that does not merely describe reality but enacts or performs an action, often seen in speech acts like promises, commands, or declarations. | Eagleton compares ideological and literary language to performative speech acts, where statements serve to produce social and emotional effects rather than refer to reality in a straightforward way. |
| Narrative Closure | The completion or resolution of a narrative’s plot, providing a sense of conclusion or finality. | Eagleton discusses narrative closure as a mechanism of ideology that stabilizes meaning, providing a sense of coherence and order, which is crucial for securing the ideological coherence of social relations. |
| Structuralism | A theoretical approach that emphasizes the underlying structures (such as language) that govern human culture and meaning. | Eagleton draws on structuralist ideas when discussing how ideology functions at a structural level, focusing on the relation between various elements (such as subjects and objects) in producing ideology. |
| Emotive Discourse | A type of discourse focused on expressing emotions, wishes, or desires rather than providing factual or referential statements about the world. | Eagleton argues that much of ideological language is emotive, meaning that it articulates emotional or subjective responses to reality, often in ways that align with social and political interests. |
| Literary Fiction | Fictional narratives that construct meaning and offer imagined worlds, often dealing with lived relations to the real rather than referential descriptions of reality. | Eagleton draws parallels between ideology and literary fiction, suggesting that both involve non-referential language and construct “lived relations” to the real that may resist straightforward verification or falsification. |
| Deconstruction | A critical approach that seeks to uncover contradictions within texts, exposing the instability of meaning and challenging traditional structures of thought. | Eagleton engages with deconstructive ideas, particularly when discussing how ideological and literary texts can be decoded and how contradictions within these texts can be sites for critical deconstruction. |
| Textuality | The condition of being a text, emphasizing the interplay of meanings, codes, and contexts within any written or spoken work. | Eagleton contrasts narrative (with its focus on closure) with textuality, where meanings are more fluid, unstable, and open to deconstruction, especially in modernist literature. |
| Modernism | A literary movement that often rejects traditional narrative forms, focusing on fragmented, ambiguous, and non-linear structures of meaning. | Eagleton refers to modernist texts as examples of works that challenge traditional narrative closure, exposing the artificiality of ideological and narrative structures and embracing the complexity and heterogeneity of meaning. |
| Class Struggle | A key Marxist concept referring to the ongoing conflict between different social classes, particularly between the proletariat (working class) and the bourgeoisie (capitalist class). | Eagleton situates narrative and ideology within the broader framework of class struggle, arguing that narrative forms are crucial in the ideological construction of subjectivity and the maintenance of class-based social relations. |
| Heterogeneity of Language | The idea that language is inherently diverse, consisting of multiple voices, meanings, and possibilities, often in conflict with each other. | Eagleton discusses how literary texts and ideologies often repress or manage this heterogeneity, but that such contradictions within language can provide openings for critical engagement and transformation, especially in political and ideological discourses. |
| Symptomatic Reading | A method of reading that seeks to uncover the underlying contradictions, gaps, or silences in a text that reveal its ideological assumptions. | Eagleton advocates for a symptomatic reading of both ideological and literary texts, highlighting how these texts repress or conceal the processes that generate them, thereby making it possible to deconstruct their ideological functions. |
Contribution of “Ideology, Fiction, Narrative” by Terry Eagleton to Literary Theory/Theories
1. Contribution to Marxist Literary Criticism
- Reconceptualization of Ideology: Eagleton critiques and expands Althusser’s Marxist theory of ideology, moving beyond the notion of ideology as “false consciousness” to view it as a lived, practical relation to reality.
- “Ideology, then, is the expression of the relation between men and their ‘world,’ that is, the (overdetermined) unity of the real relation and the imaginary relation between them and their real conditions of existence” (p. 62).
- Ideology as Signifying Practice: Eagleton argues that ideology should not be reduced to cognitive misrecognition but understood as signifying practices that articulate how subjects live their relations to material conditions.
- “Ideology, then, is not to be reduced to misrecognition, but is to be seen as signifying a set of practical relations with the ‘real.’” (p. 63).
- Narrative as Ideological Form: He links narrative to ideology, arguing that narrative closure functions as a mechanism to stabilize and secure dominant social relations.
- “Narrative, far from constituting some ruling-class conspiracy, is a valid and ineradicable mode of all human experience. More precisely, it is the very form of the ideological” (p. 79).
2. Contribution to Structuralism
- Structure of Ideology: Eagleton critiques the structuralist dimension of Althusser’s work, highlighting how ideology operates at the structural level, particularly through signifying practices.
- “Althusser’s theory is… structuralist: the social division of labor is a structure of locations to which specific forms of subjectivity are automatically assigned” (p. 63).
- Decoding Ideological “Propositions”: Eagleton emphasizes the structural relationship between ideological propositions and emotive discourses, showing how structuralist methods can decode them into underlying social and emotional intentions.
- “What differentiates ideological ‘propositions’ from genuinely referential enunciations is that the former may be ‘decoded’ into ‘emotive’ discourse” (p. 64).
3. Contribution to Post-Structuralism/Deconstruction
- Ideology as Non-referential Language: Eagleton draws on post-structuralist and deconstructionist insights to argue that ideological discourse functions as non-referential, focusing on how it produces emotional and social effects rather than accurately describing reality.
- “Like ideology, literary texts frequently involve cognitive propositions, but those propositions are not present to inform us about the real” (p. 65).
- Deconstructing Ideological Texts: He advocates for a deconstructive reading of ideology and literature, where the contradictions within these texts reveal the repressive mechanisms that stabilize their meaning.
- “One way in which ideological discourses forestall such deconstruction is by articulating themselves in such a way as to repress the mechanisms of their generation” (p. 66).
4. Contribution to Modernism and Literary Fiction
- Modernist Challenge to Narrative Closure: Eagleton highlights how modernist texts disrupt traditional narrative structures, exposing the artificial closure of narrative that serves ideological purposes.
- “The ‘modernist’ text is simply the one which has incorporated this irony as the very structuration of its discourse” (p. 77).
- Fiction as Ideological: He suggests that literary fiction and ideology are analogous in their non-referentiality and the way they construct “lived relations” to the real, making fiction an inherently ideological form.
- “There is another… sense in which ideology and literary fiction are analogous in form” (p. 65).
5. Contribution to Psychoanalytic Literary Criticism
- Psychotic vs. Ideological Misrecognition: Eagleton uses psychoanalytic language to explain how ideological misrecognition can be a necessary support of behavior, akin to a psychotic relation to reality.
- “My misrecognitions are a necessary support of that ‘lived’ relation to the real which we might, perhaps, term ‘psychotic’” (p. 63).
- Oedipal Textuality and Anti-narrative: He brings in Freudian psychoanalysis to discuss the breakdown of narrative in modernist literature, drawing parallels to the Oedipal crisis where narrative hierarchies are subverted.
- “At the point of Oedipal crisis, the child rejects the emplotments of genealogy… desiring nothing less than to become its own father. This impossible conundrum… would naturally spell the death of all narrative” (p. 73).
6. Contribution to Critical Theory and Ideological Critique
- Literary Texts as Ideological Practices: Eagleton asserts that literary texts, like ideological practices, are not merely objects but dynamic practices that engage readers in ideological struggle.
- “What the ‘speech act’ theory of texts crucially emphasizes is that texts are practices. Literary texts do things to us” (p. 66).
- Literature as Propaganda: He provocatively claims that all literature, because of its ideological function, is propagandist, aligning literature with the broader ideological apparatus of society.
- “All literature is propagandist” (p. 67).
7. Contribution to Semiotics and Discourse Theory
- Materiality of the Signifier: Eagleton engages with semiotic theory, particularly Volosinov, to argue that the materiality of discourse and signification is central to understanding how ideology functions.
- “The literary text must be grasped wholly in terms of its contextual intentionality—as articulated discourse or parole rendered merely unintelligible once it is deprived of its thrust of concrete effectivity” (p. 66).
- Illocutionary Force of Texts: Eagleton draws on the concept of “speech acts” and semiotics to argue that both ideological and literary texts function as practices with illocutionary effects, shaping readers’ relations to reality.
- “They [ideological propositions] belong to the ‘illocutionary’ rather than ‘perlocutionary’ class of constative statements” (p. 65).
Examples of Critiques Through “Ideology, Fiction, Narrative” by Terry Eagleton
| Literary Work | Critique Through Eagleton’s Framework | Relevant Concepts from “Ideology, Fiction, Narrative” |
| Charles Dickens’ Hard Times | Eagleton might critique Hard Times for its depiction of industrial capitalism, exploring how its narrative reinforces or critiques the ideology of utilitarianism. | Narrative as Ideological Form: The novel’s narrative closure could be analyzed as reinforcing ideological values of the time, particularly the economic systems it critiques and yet relies on. |
| Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness | Eagleton would likely explore how the novel reflects colonial ideology, examining its portrayal of European superiority and the “Otherness” of Africa and its people. | Emotive Discourse in Ideology: The novel’s narrative may seem to describe reality but instead expresses a colonialist ideology through emotional responses to the “unknown” and “savage” Africa. |
| James Joyce’s Ulysses | Eagleton might appreciate Joyce’s challenge to traditional narrative forms, reading it as a critique of bourgeois ideology and its reliance on coherent, linear narratives. | Modernist Challenge to Narrative Closure: Joyce’s fragmented narrative resists the closure typical of ideological texts, reflecting the heterogeneity and contradictions Eagleton discusses. |
| George Eliot’s Middlemarch | Eagleton might critique Eliot’s use of narrative closure to stabilize moral and social relations, despite the novel’s critique of Victorian class and gender norms. | Narrative Closure and Ideology: The narrative’s resolution stabilizes ideological contradictions, offering a critique of Victorian society while ultimately reinforcing its existing structures. |
Criticism Against “Ideology, Fiction, Narrative” by Terry Eagleton
1. Overemphasis on Ideology in Literature
- Eagleton’s framework may be criticized for reducing literature primarily to a vehicle for ideology, neglecting the aesthetic and imaginative aspects of literary works. By emphasizing the ideological function of narrative and fiction, the richness and diversity of literary forms and their capacity for multiple interpretations might be overshadowed.
- Critics might argue that his approach risks turning literature into mere political propaganda, minimizing the role of art and creativity.
2. Undermining of Literary Autonomy
- The argument that all literature is essentially ideological or propagandist could be criticized for ignoring the possibility of literary autonomy or the potential for art to exist beyond political or ideological intentions.
- “All literature is propagandist” (p. 67) could be seen as a sweeping generalization that overlooks literature’s capacity for individual or personal expression that resists political categorization.
3. Limited Engagement with Reader’s Subjectivity
- Eagleton’s focus on signifying practices and ideological structures might be seen as limiting the role of individual readers’ interpretations. His framework places more weight on the role of ideology in shaping literature than on the subjective, diverse ways readers engage with texts.
- This could be criticized for downplaying how different readers might interpret or resist the ideological meanings embedded in texts.
4. Theoretical Overcomplexity and Abstraction
- Eagleton’s theoretical approach is dense and layered with Marxist, psychoanalytic, and post-structuralist terms, which can make the analysis difficult to follow or overly abstract for readers who seek practical applications or more straightforward literary critique.
- Critics may argue that this overcomplexity makes his ideas inaccessible to broader audiences, thereby limiting their practical relevance in literary studies.
5. Neglect of Cultural and Historical Specificity
- Eagleton’s broad application of ideological critique may be seen as neglecting the cultural and historical contexts in which literary works are produced and received. His emphasis on ideology as a structural feature risks flattening the specific historical and social factors that shape individual works of literature.
- The focus on ideology as an overarching structure might fail to account for how particular historical moments and cultural circumstances give rise to diverse literary forms and meanings.
6. Dismissal of Aesthetic and Emotional Value
- By focusing on the ideological function of literary texts, Eagleton arguably downplays the aesthetic and emotional dimensions of literature, which many critics and readers value as essential to the literary experience. His Marxist perspective might be seen as reducing literature to an instrumental or didactic function.
- This dismissal could be criticized for failing to acknowledge literature’s emotional or psychological impact on readers, which is not always tied to ideological structures.
7. Ideology as an All-Encompassing Explanation
- Eagleton’s insistence that all literature and narrative forms are ideological may be seen as overly deterministic, leaving little room for texts that might resist or subvert ideology in more complex ways than he allows. This could limit a more nuanced understanding of literature’s diverse potential.
- Critics might argue that this perspective oversimplifies the relationship between text and ideology, ignoring instances where literature can disrupt or escape ideological constraints.
Representative Quotations from “Ideology, Fiction, Narrative” by Terry Eagleton with Explanation
| Quotation | Explanation |
| 1. “Ideology, then, is the expression of the relation between men and their ‘world.’” | Eagleton explores how ideology expresses both real and imagined relations between individuals and their social conditions. This reflects his engagement with Althusser’s theory of ideology. |
| 2. “Ideology is not to be reduced to misrecognition, but is to be seen as signifying a set of practical relations with the ‘real.’” | Eagleton critiques traditional views of ideology as false consciousness, arguing instead that ideology actively shapes lived relations with reality, not just misunderstandings or illusions. |
| 3. “The logical point at stake here is that propositions may be true or false, but practices cannot be.” | Eagleton suggests that while ideological propositions can be critiqued for their truth or falsehood, the practical ways in which people live out these ideologies cannot be evaluated in the same way. |
| 4. “Like ideology, literary texts frequently involve cognitive propositions, but those propositions are not present to inform us about the real.” | Eagleton aligns literary texts with ideology, emphasizing that literature doesn’t directly reflect reality but constructs meaning through indirect, ideological representations. |
| 5. “Narrative, far from constituting some ruling-class conspiracy, is a valid and ineradicable mode of all human experience.” | Eagleton defends narrative as a fundamental human practice, arguing against the critique that it merely reinforces ruling-class ideologies. It’s an essential way people make sense of the world. |
| 6. “Literary texts do things to us. What they bring about is not something that happens after we have finished reading them… but is effected by and in the reading.” | Here, Eagleton emphasizes the active role of literary texts as they shape readers’ thoughts and emotions during the act of reading, underscoring the performative power of literature. |
| 7. “For Marx, the text of revolutionary history is not foreclosed upon itself in this way: it lacks the symmetrical shape of narrative, dispersed as it is into textual heterogeneity.” | Eagleton uses Marxism to critique traditional narrative forms, arguing that Marx’s historical materialism rejects linear, closed narratives in favor of ongoing, fragmented processes. |
| 8. “It is not the case that post-revolutionary subjects will spontaneously ‘know’ the social formation in the very grain and texture of their ‘lived relations’ to it.” | Eagleton argues that even in a post-revolutionary society, ideology will persist in shaping how individuals relate to their social conditions, emphasizing the complexity of ideological influence. |
| 9. “The insertion of the subject into an ideological formation is simultaneously its access to a repertoire of narrative conventions and devices which provide it with a stable self-identity through time.” | Eagleton highlights how individuals form their sense of identity through ideological narratives, which provide coherence to their lives, even though the narratives are shaped by ideology. |
| 10. “The task of Marxism, as I have said, is to identify and transform the generative mechanisms of that determinate plurality, but the ‘content’ that will thereby be produced will, to revert to Marx’s phrase, ‘go beyond the phrase.’” | Eagleton describes the Marxist goal of not only revealing the mechanisms of ideology but also moving beyond ideological constructs to transformative social practices. |
Suggested Readings: “Ideology, Fiction, Narrative” by Terry Eagleton
- Althusser, Louis. For Marx. Verso, 2005.
- Eagleton, Terry. Criticism and Ideology: A Study in Marxist Literary Theory. Verso, 2006.
- Eagleton, Terry. Marxism and Literary Criticism. Routledge, 2002.
- Jameson, Fredric. The Political Unconscious: Narrative as a Socially Symbolic Act. Cornell University Press, 1981. www.cornellpress.cornell.edu/book/9780801492228/the-political-unconscious/.
- Marx, Karl. Capital: A Critique of Political Economy, Volume 1. Penguin Classics, 1990.
- Said, Edward W. Beginnings: Intention and Method. Columbia University Press, 1985.
- Brecht, Bertolt. Brecht on Theatre: The Development of an Aesthetic. Methuen Drama, 2014.
- Volosinov, V.N. Marxism and the Philosophy of Language. Harvard University Press, 1986. www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog.php?isbn=9780674550988.
- Foucault, Michel. The Archaeology of Knowledge. Pantheon, 1972.
- Lacan, Jacques. Écrits: A Selection. Norton & Company, 2007.