Gramsci, Antonio

Antonio Gramsci (1891–1937) was a founding member of the Italian Communist Party, an intellectual, and an activist whose thought has had deep impacts on many different theoretical fields, including security studies. Besides being a politician and theorist, Gramsci, who was born in Sardinia, Italy, founded the newspaper L’Ordine Nuovo (The New Order). In his role as a politician, Gramsci helped organize factory councils, which were democratic entities elected by manufacturing workers. After founding the Italian Communist Party, he spent some time in the Soviet Union. On his return to Italy, he was appointed leader of his party and elected to Italy’s Chamber of Deputies. The Communist Party was outlawed by the Italian prime minister Benito Mussolini, and Gramsci was jailed in 1926. While in prison, ...