Antonio Gramsci focuses very much on the inequality of social classes that is present at all times and in all places. Gramsci discusses the problems that he has with the “intellectual class” which not only he believes to be incorrectly classified, but also unequally exalted. This specific example is utilized by Gramsci in order to emphasize the Marxist notion that people who belong to classes of higher prestige are neither deserving of it nor are they being opposed by the ones that are forced beneath them. Gramsci points out that these intellectuals aren’t placed there because of some distinctive characteristic based on their talents or skills, but because of the relationships that they have and the consent of the people who are considered lesser. Gramsci makes it very clear that this aspect of society is neither just nor natural and is a product of and reinforced by society.
A Marxist critic in the broader sense follows many of these guidelines when criticizing a text. The fact that they are using Marxism to criticize a piece of work already tells us that they are seeing the piece in a negative light and that parts of the story disagree with their views. Marxist critics look beyond the denoted message of the reading and search for hidden meanings in their words. The connoted message is then interpreted in a manner that displays the concepts of Marxist critics, discussing how the story reinforces the inequality of social classes and the divisions of labor. These critics attempt to show that even in literature or media whose concentration is not economically or politically based, it is possible for ideas of labor divisions and unequal classes to be conveyed as acceptable to an unsuspecting audience. In certain situations, this critical way of viewing a text can be unfortunate because it makes the reader distrustful of what they are reading even if the story had no hidden agenda and was merely misconstrued by a doubting critic. However, it is also important for readers to take the Marxist critics’ views into account because it reminds them that there is nothing natural about the way the society is, and to be wary of what they are told.