‘ORGANIC CRISIS’ AND THE COLLAPSE OF THE SOVIET UNION

In certain periods of time discursive meanings appear to be particularly stable. That is not to say that discursive change does not occur. Rather, when it does occur it proceeds gradually and largely imperceptibly. In other periods of time, however, meanings undergo seismic changes. In order to understand why certain eras are more conducive to discursive change than others this research employs Gramsci's notion of ‘organic crisis’. According to Gramsci, in periods when the political power of the ruling classes is in decline, there is an opportunity for another hegemonic bloc to emerge:

As discussed above, the work of Gramsci has been key in developing our understanding of how ruling orders are sustained by a mixture of political and cultural hegemony. As Althusser (2008) explains, ruling elites wield power not only through the use of ‘repressive state apparatuses’ (the police, the army and so on), but also by employing ‘ideological state apparatuses’ (religion, education, media, families and so on). In essence, most ruling orders will need to secure ideological, or discursive, legitimisation in order to sustain their rule.

This means that once a set of ‘incurable structural conditions’ starts to diminish the power of the ruling hegemony there are also extraordinary opportunities to create new discursive meanings. The ruling hegemony's grip over education, media and other ideological state apparatuses is weakened. Space is therefore opened up for alternative hegemonic blocs to use the conditions of this organic crisis for their own benefit, and to create alternative discourses and meanings to the ones that have been kept stable by the existing political order.