Marx’s Theory of Ideology—From Its Enlightenment Roots to Russian Discussions

Abstract

The theory of ideology sketched by Marx and Engels in the so-called German Ideology remained fragmentary and, although it clearly continued the Enlightenment discourses on “prejugées”, gave for the subsequent generations of Marxists the possibility to interpret it in various ways. In Russia, the two main versions of the Marxist ideology theory were represented by Lenin, who stuck on the traditional interpretation of the Second International, and by Aleksandr Bogdanov, who developed a novel concept of ideology which in many respects foreshadowed Louis Althusser’s ideas.