The Prison Notebooks

The Prison Notebooks are a collection of writings by Italian Marxist thinker Antonio Gramsci, recorded during his time in prison from 1929 to 1935. They explore ideas about how societies maintain power and control, emphasizing the importance of cultural and ideological influence beyond mere political or economic factors. Gramsci introduces concepts like "cultural hegemony," explaining how dominant groups shape societal beliefs to stay in control. These notebooks are influential in understanding how culture, education, and media play roles in sustaining power structures, making them key texts in political theory, cultural studies, and Marxist thought.