This word is derived from the Greek verb hegeisthai, which
translates as “to lead.” Early leaders who were able to exert control and
influence over a group of people might be referred to as hegemons. A hegemon
had to have the support from at least one dominant class of people to keep the
population as a whole from rebelling against the leadership.
Historically, this term often referred to a
city-state or country that exerted power over other city-states or countries
indirectly rather than through military force. Modern uses of
"hegemony" often refer to a group in a society having power over
others within that society. For example, the wealthy class might be said to
have hegemony over the poor because of its ability to use its money to influence
many aspects of society and government.
Hegemony more often refers to the power of a single group in a
society to essentially lead and dominate other groups in the society. This
might be done by controlling forms of communication, by influencing voters or
by influencing government leaders. Some lobbying groups, for example, might
have hegemony status over leaders in congress. Rules that would prohibit or
limit political spending by special interest groups are designed to reduce
their dominance and allow individual voters to have more control.
Antonio Gramsci, was a leading Marxist thinker, he rejected
economism, insisting on the independence of ideology from economic determinism.
Gramsci also rejected crude materialism, offering a humanist version of Marxism
which focused on human subjectivity.
Gramsci used the term hegemony to denote the predominance of one
social class over others. This represents not only political and economic
control, but also the ability of the dominant class to project its own way of
seeing the world so that those who are subordinated by it accept it as 'common
sense' and 'natural'. Commentators stress that this involves willing and active
consent. Common sense is 'the way a subordinate class lives its subordination’.
Gramsci emphasizes struggle.
He noted that 'common sense is not something rigid and immobile, but is
continually transforming itself’. As Fiske puts it, 'Consent must be constantly
won and rewon, for people's material social experience constantly reminds them
of the disadvantages of subordination and thus poses a threat to the dominant
class... Hegemony... posits a constant contradiction between ideology and the
social experience of the subordinate that makes this interface into an
inevitable site of ideological struggle’. References to the mass media in terms
of an ideological 'site of struggle' are recurrent in the commentaries of those
influenced by this perspective. Gramsci's stance involved a rejection of
economism since it saw a struggle for ideological hegemony as a primary factor
in radical change.
Cultural hegemony is the philosophic and
sociological concept, originated by the Marxist philosopher Antonio Gramsci,
that a culturally-diverse society can be ruled or dominated by one of its social
classes. It is the dominance of one social group over another, e.g. the ruling
class over all other classes. The theory claims that the ideas of the ruling
class come to be seen as the norm; they are seen as universal ideologies,
perceived to benefit everyone whilst only really benefiting the ruling class.
For example :
In "advanced" industrial
societies hegemonic cultural innovations such as compulsory schooling, mass media, and popular culture had
indoctrinated workers to a false consciousness. Instead of working towards a revolution that would truly
serve their collective needs, workers in "advanced" societies were
listening to the rhetoric of nationalist leaders, seeking consumer
opportunities and middle-class status,
embracing an individualist ethos of success through competition, and/or
accepting the guidance of bourgeois religious
leaders. In India, Cultural hegemony can b seen through the condescending trend
of professions such as engineering and medicine over other professions.
Five Dimensions of the Concept of Hegemony
There are at least five basic dimensions to the concept of hegemony,
ranging from gross and obvious to more subtle. Hegemony is much more than
simple domination because of its more subtle dimensions found later on this
list.
1. Military
The hegemon has the strongest military in the world, significantly
stronger than any of its rivals. Its military alliance system is significantly
stronger than any rival military blocs.
2. Economic
The hegemon has the largest and most technologically advanced
economy in the world. It is a major trading partner of most of the nations of
the world, including most of the major powers.
3. Political
The hegemon has a wide range of political allies, and friendly
relations with most nations and major powers.
4. Institutional
The
hegemon, working with its allies, makes most of the rules that govern global
political and economic relations. The hegemon, along with its allies, usually
controls most of the international institutions. Thus, most of the policies of
the international institutions favor the hegemon and its allies.
5. Ideological
The
hegemon largely determines the terms of discourse in global relations. Marx
once wrote, "The ruling ideas of any age are the ideas of the ruling
class." Today, the predominant ideas about globalization are the ideas of
hegemon.
Besides money, other forms of influence can be used by one group to
dominate others. For example, control of the media can influenced things such
as what shows get aired or canceled and the degree to which a television
station covers or does not cover certain news stories. In the late 20th century
and early 21st century, however, this dominance was reduced because the
Internet gave individuals and small companies more access and control over
different forms of media, such as news and music.
People became able to self-publish music, videos, texts and other
works of art rather than being under the control of broadcasting, publishing or
other types of corporations. In addition, a greater variety of these works
became available to consumers. News came to be disseminated through blogs and
social networking websites in addition to traditional media outlets. All of
these things reduced the hegemony of large corporations in the news and
entertainment industries.
What exactly is the meaning of "hegemony"?
"...Dominant groups in society, including fundamentally but not
exclusively the ruling class, maintain their dominance by securing the
'spontaneous consent' of subordinate groups, including the working class,
through the negotiated construction of a political and ideological consensus
which incorporates both dominant and dominated groups."
A class had succeeded in persuading the other classes of society to
accept its own moral, political and cultural values;
The concept assumes a plain consent given by the majority of a
population to a certain direction suggested by those in power;
However, this consent is not always peaceful, and may combine
physical force or coercion with intellectual, moral and cultural inducement;
Can be understood as "common sense", a cultural universe
where the dominant ideology is practiced and spread;
Something which emerges out of social and class struggles, and serve
to shape and influence peoples minds;
It is a set of ideas by means of which dominant groups strive to
secure the consent of subordinate groups to their leadership;
Hegemony is readjusted and re-negotiated constantly. Gramsci said
that it can never be taken for granted, in fact during the post-revolutionary
phase (when the labour class has gained control) the function of hegemonic
leadership does not disappear but changes its character.
However, he describes two different modes of social control:
Coercive control: manifested through direct force or its threat
(needed by a state when its degree of hegemonic leadership is low or
fractured);
Consensual control: which arises when individuals voluntarily
assimilate the worldview of the dominant group (=hegemonic leadership).
Most American specialists in international relations
(and many of their European counterparts) believe in the theory of hegemonic
stability. Simply stated, this theory
argues that the hegemonic power plays a crucial role in maintaining stability
and order in the world system. In other
words, the hegemon is the most benign power in the global system. Because the hegemon is the power that
benefits most from the existing world system, the hegemon has the greatest
stake in keeping that system functioning.
The military power of the hegemon keeps the peace, discouraging
challengers to the global order. The
economy of the hegemon is the engine that drives international economic growth
and development. In order to preserve
its network of alliances, the hegemon is the political broker who moderates
disputes between other powers, thus keeping them from escalating into serious
conflict. The hegemon seeks to bind other
states into the global order and thus plays a leading role in developing global
institutions that manage international security and economic relations. The hegemon is often the source and usually a
propagator of ideas about world order and security. For example, current concepts of
“globalization” are shaped largely by American intellectuals. In the words of former Secretary of State
Madeline Albright, the hegemon is “the indispensable nation…(the one) that walks
tall and looks forward.”
On the other hand, the theory of hegemonic instability argues that
hegemony is a destructive force in the global system. The hegemon uses its military power to impose
its will around the world, raising the level of violence associated with
regional political conflicts. The
economy of the hegemon sucks resources from less developed economies and twists
development around the globe to fit its insatiable appetites rather than
benefit the peoples of the world. The
alliance system of the hegemon virtually guarantees that peoples and states
excluded from the hegemon’s councils will be forced into a series of
counter-hegemonic alliances. Conflict
between the hegemonic alliance system and the counter-hegemonic alliance system
was the source of the two world wars and the Cold War. The military competition between the
hegemonic and counter-hegemonic alliances turns many otherwise manageable
political disputes into violent conflict.
The rules and values of the international institutions constructed by
the hegemon are blatantly unfair. The
hegemon represents its own narrow national interests as the interests of global
society, while in fact global institutions serve to expand the power and wealth
of the hegemon. Just as a dictator
within a nation proclaims himself the protector and voice of the people while
actually suppressing and exploiting the people, the hegemon claims to be the
protector of international order and the driving force of global prosperity,
but in truth the hegemon spreads disorder, repression, and exploitation.
Hegemony and the Media
Gramsci believed the media have always played a key role in teaching
people to do things in their everyday lives that support the power structures.
In media studies today, people look at how the media support power structures
such as government, capitalism/corporations, and patriarchy. For example:
A news report that shows strong support for a controversial foreign
policy decision can be said to hegemonically support the government.
A home improvement network that makes it seem "normal" to
own high-end granite counter tops and stainless steel appliances can be said to
be hegemonically supporting the capitalist economic system.
A game show that shows scantily-clad women passively standing still
until the host tells her to "open the case" can be seen as
hegemonically promoting patriarchy.
Media can also be seen as being counterhegemonic. An episode of a
sitcom that questions traditional women's roles, for example, might be seen as
counterhegemonic. So might a documentary that questions the government's
involvement in a war.
Antonio Gramsci's conceptualization of hegemony has become an
important part of the media studies discipline and media studies classes around
the world. This concept has contributed a valuable vocabulary for discussing
the relationship between media and power.
In conclusion , the vast
concept of hegemony can be summarized as
