Pioneer Of Political Practice

With current cultural studies unprecedentedly prospering and various opinionsof critical discourses flooding, Terry Eagleton (1943-), contemporary well-knownWestern Marxist literary critic and cultural theorist, has made in-depth researchesinto literary criticisms and cultural theories with a unique exquisite critical style andbroad historical-and-cultural vision; and this has made him quite prestigious in theWestern Marxist theory circle. Eagleton inherits Marxist social-historical criticalmethods, and begins with the study of ideology (key concept in Marxist criticism ofliterature and the other arts), so as to better analyze and criticize literature, aestheticsand culture, etc., which usually takes on a strong sense of culture and politics.As cultural philosophy “as lived experience”,“as social structure”, and “as art”,has become the core issue of people’s spiritual life in the20th century, thecontemporariness of Eagleton’s theories has direct reference meaning; thus making aprofound study to such representative of Western Marxist cultural philosophy likeEagleton is quite necessary. This thesis aims to analyze Eagleton’s ideas of culturalphilosophy starting with the perspective of Marxist cultural philosophy; and developdiscussions centering on three major issues: firstly, ideological criticism—analysison critical re-interpretation of the concept of “ideology”, establishment ofcultural-political criticism with ideology, opposition towards pessimistic ideologicalcriticism and postmodernism; secondly, cultural criticism—analysis on criticalre-interpretation of the concept of “culture”, political significance of culture withcultural production, cultivation of new social subject as aim of cultural criticism;finally, political practice—analysis on social historical and political feature of criticaltheory, transformation from the view of literary theory to cultural theory, politicalpractice and application of Eagleton’s critical theory.By writing this thesis, the author wants to convey that Eagleton’s theories have realistic meanings. The essential meanings of Eagleton’s view on cultural philosophylie in ideological criticism, cultural criticism and at the same time, convey theinfluences that Eagleton’s ideas of cultural philosophy have placed on politicalpractice. Then better bring force a brand new social-historical pattern for politicalpractice and application guiding by his theories.