Antonio Gramsci, an Italian Marxist philosopher and political theorist, developed the concept of 'hegemony' to explain how the ruling class maintains its dominance not just through coercion or economic control, but primarily through the consent of the governed. Hegemony, for Gramsci, is a form of cultural and ideological leadership where the dominant group's worldview, values, and norms become widely accepted as natural, universal, or common sense by subordinate groups.

This consent is manufactured and maintained through various institutions of 'civil society' – such as schools, media, religious organizations, trade unions, and cultural bodies. These institutions disseminate and reinforce the dominant ideology, shaping public opinion and limiting the scope of alternative ideas. The ruling class, through its intellectual and moral leadership, manages to present its particular interests as the general interests of society, thereby securing the active or passive acquiescence of the masses.

Gramsci distinguished hegemony from mere 'domination' (which relies on force and state apparatus). While the state's coercive power remains in the background, hegemony operates by integrating subordinate groups into the existing order through ideological means. However, hegemony is never absolute; it is a continuous process of negotiation and struggle. Subordinate groups can develop 'counter-hegemonic' ideas and institutions to challenge the dominant worldview and eventually achieve their own intellectual and moral leadership, paving the way for social transformation.

Gramsci's concept of hegemony provides a crucial insight into the complex ways power operates in modern societies, extending beyond economic structures to encompass cultural and ideological spheres.