GABOR TAMAS RITTERSPORN industrial, agricultural and administrative techniques and of economic, social, scientific, cultural and political institutions. And even if they circumscribe some of the ruling class's prerogatives, these activities of the intermediary stratum, once they have been conceded, must, in the absense of fondamental changes, inevitably perform the essential fonction of the discriminatory, repressive and violent methods of the exercise of power: the exclusion of part of society from the practice of social and political activities which remain the special preserve of skilled professional groups belonging to the classes whose really or relatively dominating, directing and privileged position can only be maintened by means of this exclusion. The aspirations and activities of the dissident movement, therefore, do not transcend the political fonctions inherent in the system which are performed by the social stratum to which the vast majority of its participants belong or wish to belong. The defence of the particular interests of professional and administrative groups and hierarchies by proposais demanding that political strategies should obey the internai logic of techniques and institutions contributes to the accomplishment of one of the fondamental tasks of the middle layers: the improvement of the system. Although this defence may create permanent tensions between the intermediary layers and the ruling class, so long as the latter is capable of integrating some of the proposais into its own strategies they will contribute to the perpetuation of its monopoly of decision-making. But even the demands which the ruling class cannot integrate into its own strategies, and the opposition to the discriminatory, repressive and violent aspects of its methods of exercising power do not transcend the political fonctions immanent in the system which are discharged by the middle layers. For although they constitute a serious challenge to the ruling class's monopoly of decision-making, not only do they not dispute the social and political system, but they even continue to serve it. The middle layers owe their social status to their active and skilled contribution to the reproduction of the system which is their most important political fonction. This reproduction necessarily involves them in the development of techniques and institutions in which they are the exclusive spe38
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