Abstract
There is continuing interest in the life and work of Antonio Gramsci and this is shown in the number of publications that we have seen over the past few years. The publication of the book Antonio Gramsci: A Pedagogy to Change the World is another statement of the continuing interest in Gramsci’s work and an expression about the continuing relevance of his scholarship. This publication, an edited book, boasts a collection of essays looking at contributions of Gramsci to critical education/critical pedagogy as an activist educator. The editors, Nicola Pizzolato and John Holst, demonstrate in a compelling way the measure of this Italian thinker, for especially critical education/critical pedagogy and, of course, for other branches of education and fields of endeavor. From the foreword, written by Anne Showstack Sassoon, the final statement “Gramsci serves us still” (p. ix) becomes, in a way, a framing statement for the work. The various chapters point to aspects of the ongoing relevance of Gramsci and to ways in which “Gramsci serves us still.”
This book brings together scholars from North America, Europe, and Latin America. The works of the Italians Diego Fusaro, Ricaardo Pagano, and Pietro Maltese and the French scholar Andre Tosel published in English expose their scholarship and analytical insights to those who might not normally be reading their work (since they are not widely available in English). The volume is definitely about education/pedagogy and hegemony and mirrors much of the work of Gramsci, whose overall political project was an educational one.
A closer look at the book reveals that it is divided into three major sections with the opening interpretative framework by the editors. Then, there is a section that focuses on the “Understanding of Gramsci and Education” followed by a section in which the work of researchers who used Gramscian concepts as theoretical frameworks in their research are identified and discussed. There is a final section, Part 3, looking at key Gramscian concepts. This arrangement provides an appropriate layout that communicates eloquently the focus of the work as one that is published to demonstrate the ongoing relevance of Gramsci. Furthermore, the major message communicated by the title, the fact that Gramsci’s pedagogy courted transformation, especially societal transformation and its actual practical possibilities of usage occasioning social change, are well suited to this presentation of the content.
In the first chapter, written by Nicola Pizzolato and John Holst, they point out that in Gramsci’s work there is advocacy for politics and pedagogy, as well as for institutions that could nurture a proletarian culture leading to the transformation of the state and the society. Hence, politics and pedagogy were no mismatch bedfellows but important to the overall agenda of transformation. In that regard, pedagogy was a political tool, and therefore, his activities in the community, for instance, work with the factory councils (taken up again and again in various essays in the volume), was interventionist political pedagogy. Education was understood as central to the outworking of hegemony, contributing to the cementing, disrupting, and/or renegotiation of hegemony through the kind of knowledge and situation that it promoted. Therefore, his view that “every relationship of hegemony is necessarily a pedagogical relationship” underscored the strong connection so many saw and analyzed in his writings on hegemony and pedagogy. Furthermore, it is clearly communicated that the concepts culture, education, and politics figure prominently in the work of Gramsci. This was evident since education was nurtured by and within culture, and in turn, it transforms culture into the engine for political leadership. Later in his work, it was clear that his understanding of the philosophy of praxis or Marxist understandings were his contributions to Marxist thinking. The pedagogy of praxis was aimed at reawakening others’ sense of conscious action and organization.
The issue of whether or not Gramsci’s work embraced conservative understandings of schooling (an allegation made by Entwistle, 1979, and reignited by Hirsch, 2010, as cited by Pizzolato & Holst, p. xi) is raised and dismissed. This discussion is considered, no doubt, important for all those who ascribe to Gramsci a honored place in the firmament of critical pedagogy. Clearly, this allegation concerning his embrace of conservative pedagogical practices would certainly deviate from the towering heights he would have otherwise attained in critical education/adult education circles; hence, its defeat is welcome relief to many.
“Gramsci serves us still” and his work seen as “a pedagogy to transform the world” are aptly demonstrated in the chapters dealing with radial education through carefully selected pedagogical projects. These projects utilized Gramscian principles and concepts in practical ways to initiate/cause social change in communities.
I wholeheartedly recommend this book to adult educators and all those interested in critical education.