Production vs. revelation

Althusser’s contribution to the interpretation of Spinoza

Abstract

A detour through Spinoza allowed Althusser to rediscover a Marx lost in the deviations of Marxism. A key theme in this turning point is the question of knowledge, no longer understood as correspondence between the intellect and things but instead framed within a theory of production of truths combined with a theory of falsehood as an epistemological obstacle as well as a practical reality. This doctrine draws Althusser closer to Spinoza, who opposed adequate and inadequate knowledge, and away from Marx, who regarded ideology as the opposite of reality rather than imagination. The Spinozist interpretation of ideology in terms of imagination allows Althusser to explore the materiality of imagination and its subjectivity-producing effects, which mainstream Marxism neglected.