Post #2221229
2026-05-07 14:05 UTC
What more can we learn from Gramsci?
While Monbiot might be advocating ‘radical listening’, the listening he suggests seems in some ways a bit flat. He contrasts it with conventional party wisdom to ‘use focus groups to find out what they want, and give it to them. Follow, don’t lead’. Monbiot’s radical listening seemingly functions by hearing people’s concerns, discussing their causes, and showing how the left can address them. That’s good; but it may be missing something we find in Gramsci /7
Replies (1)
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@RuthSalter@mastodon.scot 2026-05-07 14:07
Gramsci’s argument for developing a political thought capable of real change is more dynamic. It requires listening on both sides, an openness to a continuously-evolving perspective which is impacted by the ideas and experiences of those leading a movement and those participating in or following it. Put in the terms of Monbiot’s article, both voter and canvasser must be open-minded to learning from each other when listening in a conversation. /8