Timm Ebner

Abstract

Louis Althusser asserts that ideology’s function is a reproduction established in advance—for instance, by education. This essay shows the effects of this paradoxical anticipatory reproduction in Nazi ideology, wherein ideological reproduction claims the “reestablishment” of a preexisting “order.” This downright utopian claim is accompanied by a constant perception of uncanniness because reality does not meet expectations. The National-Socialist “worldview” personifies these perceptions: “reestablishment” as the “hero,” “uncanniness” as the “traitor.” By staging (alleged) opponents as traitors who hide their “true identities,” this perspective confuses attack and defense. This indistinguishability presents an extreme example of the effectiveness of ideology.

Keywords

Louis Althusser, Anti-Semitism, Nazi Ideology, National Socialism, Colonial Literature

From: Rethinking Marxism 2017 29 (2)

Editor: Wang Yi