A01

In Gramsci’s The Prison Notebooks, he believes that everyone is a philosopher because it is shown through different channels, such as common sense, language, or religion. Unlike its common definition, philosophy is not classified to only the elite thinkers, but it used by everyone regardless of their status. Gramsci mentions several key points about philosophy, one of which is that everyone conforms to one group. At first, this seemed counterintuitive to me because people think differently and do not all belong to the same group, but as I thought about his statement more, I could see his viewpoint. Everyone has certain beliefs, and their strongest opinions bring them together even if their thoughts on smaller issues may differ. We could see this with the Filipino DJs, as some of the interviewed DJs did not want to associate their ethnicity with their art, but all of them agreed that hip-hop and DJing was a large component of their community. It is through these contradictions that people realize that culture is not a straightforward concept, just how Gramsci notes that understanding oneself happens through contradictions and struggles of hegemonies (67).

In Foucault’s Truth and Power, he states how truth is never truly objective because it is always linked with power in some way or form. Consequently, the ones who deliver truth are the ones who control society and Foucault calls on us to reform the power that truth has over the different systems, such as hegemony or culture.