interpellation

The present research argues that it seems not all writers and their works may fall into an omnipresent ideology trap as Althusser conceives it; or unlike what Althusser holds, not all fictional characters are ‘interpellated”. Therefore, this research gives focal attention to reconsidering Althusser notion of ideology and his Ideological State Apparatus, ISAs, especially the cultural ISA through a descriptive-analytical method. Reed’s novel, The Free-Lance Pallbearers (1967), enjoying circumstantial artistic, religious, ethnic, racial, and literary characters, presents protagonists who not only refute or subvert this domineering ideology but also reshape and redefine it, making it necessary to reconsider Althusserian definition of literature as a cultural ISA. The novel, parodying “the Afro-American tradition of first-person, confessional narratives” is read as a microcosm to repudiate Althusser’s macrocosmic notions of reality. All through, the findings indicate that through the course of the novel, Reed subverts the dominant cultural and ideological discourse of American society through questioning the White standards from language and notions of reality to the ruling system.

This paper aimed to critically investigate Kazuo Ishiguro’s Never Let Me Go, in terms of Louise Althusser’s concepts of ideology and Interpellation. Kazuo Ishiguro’s sixth novel, Never Let Me Go, explores the tragic condition of clones living in an imaginary England of the late 1990s. Out of the parts and pieces of the main character’s fragmented memory and unclear descriptions, the reader finds out that Kathy and her friends are clones created to give certain vital organs to ordinary people. However, the main characters in this dystopian novel are not looking for emancipation, and very little could be observed in terms of resistance or objection. Applying Althusser’s theories of ideology and interpellation, this study tried to discover the reasons for the characters’ passivity and submission. The findings showed that certain beliefs and values despite being shockingly violent were internalized, naturalized, and justified in the decisive ages of childhood through the dominant ideological system. Moreover, the effect of educational system as one of the most important ISAs (Ideological State Apparatus) in interpellating the individual characters into subjects is analyzed in this novel.