Abstract
This essay argues that, given the global dominance of neo-liberal capitalism, the concept of the subaltern now needs to be replaced by that of the precariat, a term first used by Pierre Bourdieu. It further argues that the category of the subaltern emerged in key post-disciplines of cultural studies, postcolonialism and subaltern studies, all of which themselves belong to the aftermath of the West's 1968 revolutions. In our era of global capitalism, their usefulness is in decline. Indeed the precariat is a broader category than the subaltern since it covers not just those who live on the margins of the world system but all of those who are attached to cultural formations that are not primarily economic in purpose or benefit. The essay presents its arguments in part through literary critical readings of two particular texts: Primo Levi's Christ stopped at Eboli, and Amit Chaudhuri's The Immortals.
First Page
72
Last Page
80
Recommended Citation
Simon, During. 2012. "From the subaltern to the precariat." Theoretical Studies in Literature and Art 32, (1): pp.72-80. https://tsla.researchcommons.org/journal/vol32/iss1/9
