PERMANENT REVOLUTION: THE IMAGE OF THE CLASS ENEMY IN THE LITERATURE OF SOCIALIST REALISM IN ALBANIA

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Publicado en:On - line Journal Modelling the New Europe no. 48 (Sep 2025), p. 104-124
Autor principal: Reli, Alban
Otros Autores: Xhaferaj, Anjeza, PhD
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Babes-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca, Faculty of European Studies
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Acceso en línea:Citation/Abstract
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024 7 |a 10.24193/OJMNE.2025.48.07  |2 doi 
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100 1 |a Reli, Alban  |u European University of Tirana, Albania 
245 1 |a PERMANENT REVOLUTION: THE IMAGE OF THE CLASS ENEMY IN THE LITERATURE OF SOCIALIST REALISM IN ALBANIA 
260 |b Babes-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca, Faculty of European Studies  |c Sep 2025 
513 |a Journal Article 
520 3 |a This paper examines the construction of the "class enemy" in Albanian socialist realist literature through a critical discourse analysis lens. Under Enver Hoxha's leadership, the Party-State politicized aesthetics to convince citizens that Albanian society was ostensibly unified, with any divisions attributable to social elements-kulaks, bourgeoisie, and clerics-linked to the old order or to imperialist forces. Drawing on Arendt's concept of permanent revolution and Lefort's notion of social prophylaxis, the paper demonstrates how the Party continuously produced the "enemy of the people," not only by reimagining genuine opponents in fictional terms, but also by inventing new adversaries whenever ideological expediency demanded it. Waves of exclusion, persecution, and terror periodically shook the country, reaching even the upper echelons of the Party of People of Albania. Legitimated by literature and other artistic productions fully subjugated to Party directives, these purges depicted enemies as parasites or remnants warranting eradication. Through a close reading of key socialist realist works published between 1945 and 1989, the analysis highlights how specific rhetorical and narrative strategies-derogatory epithets, dehumanizing imagery, and insistence on sabotage-reinforced the totalitarian discourse of vigilance, suspicion, and annihilation. It further explores how economic position, social standing, and family background became markers for identifying the "enemy," shaping the fates reserved for such figures. The study concludes that Albanian socialist realism texts not only portrayed an "evil Other" but also served as a disciplinary apparatus in the Foucauldian sense: they rationalized ongoing purges and bolstered the state's full-spectrum control over politics, culture, and society. Ultimately, this literary deployment of the "enemy" concept sustained the Party's permanent revolution narrative, perpetuating an atmosphere of fear and legitimizing the regime's authoritarian measures. 
651 4 |a Albania 
653 |a Imagery 
653 |a Narratives 
653 |a Discourse analysis 
653 |a Totalitarianism 
653 |a Ideology 
653 |a Aesthetics 
653 |a Oppression 
653 |a Dehumanization 
653 |a Classroom communication 
653 |a Social background 
653 |a Critical theory 
653 |a Prime ministers 
653 |a Critical discourse analysis 
653 |a Political parties 
653 |a Eradication 
653 |a Political discourse 
653 |a Socialism 
653 |a Revolutions 
653 |a Leadership 
653 |a Epithets 
653 |a Propaganda 
653 |a Annihilation 
653 |a Socialist realism 
653 |a Culture 
653 |a Vigilance 
653 |a Social status 
653 |a Clergy 
653 |a Deployment 
653 |a Bourgeoisie 
653 |a Disease prevention 
653 |a Realism 
653 |a Art 
653 |a Parasites 
700 1 |a Xhaferaj, Anjeza, PhD  |u European University of Tirana, Albania 
773 0 |t On - line Journal Modelling the New Europe  |g no. 48 (Sep 2025), p. 104-124 
786 0 |d ProQuest  |t Political Science Database 
856 4 1 |3 Citation/Abstract  |u https://www.proquest.com/docview/3287119266/abstract/embedded/6A8EOT78XXH2IG52?source=fedsrch 
856 4 0 |3 Full Text  |u https://www.proquest.com/docview/3287119266/fulltext/embedded/6A8EOT78XXH2IG52?source=fedsrch 
856 4 0 |3 Full Text - PDF  |u https://www.proquest.com/docview/3287119266/fulltextPDF/embedded/6A8EOT78XXH2IG52?source=fedsrch