Ideology

What is a basic definition of ideology?

It is a worldview or a set of ideas - a beleif system.

What do the different meanings of ideology often include?

Negative aspects such as:

• Distorted, false or mistaken ideas about the world, or a partial, one-sided or biased view of reality.

• Ideas that conceal the interests of a particular group, or that legitimate their privileges.

• Ideas that prevent change by misleading people about the reality of the situation they are in or about their true interests or position.

• A self-sustaining belief system that is irrational and closed to criticism.

When someone uses the term ideology to describe a belief system, what does it usually mean?

That they regard it as factually and/or morally wrong.

Wjat does Marxisms see society as divided into?

Two opposed classes: a minority capitalist ruling class who own the means of production and control the state and a majority working class who are propertyless and therefore forced to sell their labour to the capitalist class.

For Marxists, what is it in the workers’ interests to do?

Overthrow capitalism by means of a socialist revolution and replace it with a classless community in which the means of production are collectively, not privately, owned and used to benefit society as a whole.

For Marxists, for a revolution, what must the working class do?

They must first become conscious of their true position as exploited ‘wage slaves‘ - they must develop class consciousness.

What do the ruling class control?

Not only the means of material production, but the means of production of ideas, through institutions such as education, the mass media and religion. These produce ruling class ideology - ideas that legitimate or justify the status quo.

What does ruling-class ideology include?

Ideas and beliefs such as:

• Equality will never work because it goes against ‘human nature‘.

• Victim blaming ideas about poverty, such as what Bowles and Gintis call ‘the poor are dumb‘ theory of meritocracy.

• Racist ideas about the inferiority of ethnic minorities, which divide black and white workers and make them easier to rule.

Who are the dominant ideas the ideas of?

The ruling class, and they function to prevent change by creating a false consciousness among the workers. However, despite these ideological barriers, Marx believes that ultimately the working class will develop a true class consciousness and unite to overthrow capitalism.

What does Gramsci refer to the ruling class’ ideological domination of society as?

Hegemony,

What does Gramsci argue?

That the working class can develop ideas that challenge ruling-class hegemony.

For Gramsci, it is possible for the working class to develop class consciousness and overthrow capitalism?

Yes, because in capitalist society, workers have dual consciousness - a mixture of ruling class ideology and and ideas they develop from their own experience of exploitation and their struggles against it.

In Gramsci’s view, what will a working class revolution require?

A political party of ‘organic intellectuals‘ - workers who through their anti-capitalist struggles have developed a class consciousness.

What do some critics argue about Gramsci’s ideas?

That it is not the existence of a dominant ideology that keeps the workers in line and prevents attempts to overthrow capitalism.

What do Abercrombie et al. argue?

That it is economic factors such as the fear of unemployment that keep the workers from rebelling.

What is nationalism?

An important political ideology that has had a major impact on the world over the last 200 years.

What does nationalism claim?

That:

• Nations are real, distinctive communities each with its own unique characteristics and a long, shared history.

• Every nation should be self-governing.

• National loyalty and identity should come before all other such as tribe, class or religion.

What does Anderson argue?

That a nation is only an ‘imagined community’, not a real one. Although we identify with it, we will never know most of its other member. This imagined community can bind millions of strangers together and create a sense of common purpose.

What was Marx?

An internationalist.

In the Marxist view, what is nationalism?

A form of false class consciousness that helps to prevent the overthrow of capitalism by dividing the international working class.

Why is nationalism seen as a form of false class consciousness in the Marxist view?

Because it encourages workers to believe they have more in common with the capitalists of their own country than with workers of other countries. This has enabled the ruling class of each capitalist country to persuade the working class to fight wars on their behalf.

What do functionalists see nationalism as?

A secular civil religion. Like religion, it integrates individuals into larger social and political units by making them feel part of something greater than themselves.

In modern secular societies, what may people be unwilling to believe in?

Supernatural beings, but may be willing to see themselves as part of a nation.

What do modern societies often contain?

Many different faiths, so religion is likely to be a source of division,

By contrast to modern secular societies, what does nationalism function as?

A civil religion that unites everyone into a single national community, regardless of differences such as religion or class.

For functionalists, what does education play an important role in?

Creating social solidarity, and this may include collective rituals including nationalist symbols such as the flag and national anthem, as well as learning the nations history

What does Gellner see nationalism as?

False consciousness: its claim that nations have existed since time immemorial is untrue. In Gellner’s view, nationalism is a very modern phenomenon. Pre-industrial societies were held together not by nationalism, but by face-to-face relationships in small-scale communities with a fixed hierarchy of ascribed statuses.

How is modern society different to traditional society?

Industrialisation creates large scale, impersonal societies with a complex division of labour, administered by vast bureaucracies, and where all citizens are of relatively equal status.

What do modern states therefore need?

Some means of enabling communication between strangers to take place, especially in the economy This is what nationalism makes possible, by using a mass state education system to impose a single, standard, national culture and language on every member of society. Similarly, nationalism regards all citizens as equal and this makes economic and social cooperation between them easier.

What else does Geller note?

That elites use nationalism as an ideology to motivate the population to endure the hardships and suffering that accompany the first phase of industrialisation thereby enabling a state to modernise.

When was much of Mannheim’s work on ideology done between?

The two world wars: a time of intense political and social conflict - this undoubtedly influenced his views.

What does Mannheim see all beleif systems as?

A partial or one-sided worldview. Their one-sidedness results from being the viewpoint of one particular group or class and its interests.

What does Mannheim distinguish between?

Two types of belief systems or worldview:

• Ideological thought.

• Utopian thought.

What does ideological thought justify?

Keeping things as they are. It reflects the position and interests of privileged groups such as the capitalist class. These groups benefit from maintaining the status quo, so their belief system tends to be conservative and favours hierarchy.

What does utopian thought justify?

Social change. It reflects the position and interests of the underprivileged and offers a vision of how society could be organized differently. Mannheim sees Marxism as an example of utopian thought.

What does Mannheim see the two worldviews as?

Creations of groups of intellectuals who attach themselves to particular classes. But because they represent the interests of particular groups. and not society as a whole, they produce partial views of reality. The belief system of each class or groups only gives us a partial truth about the world.

For Mannheim, why is the belief system of each class/group only giving us partial truths a source of conflict in the world?

Different intellectuals, linked to different groups and classes, produce opposed and antagonistic ideas that justify the claims and interests of their group as against the others.

In Mannheim’s view, what is the solution?

To ‘detach‘ the intellectuals from the social groups they represent and create a non-aligned or free floating intelligentsia standing above the conflict. Freed from representing the interests of this or that group, they would be able to synthesise elements of the different partial ideologies and utopias so as to arrive at a ‘total‘ worldview representing the interests of society as a whole.

What is the problem with free-floating intelligentsia?

Many of the different political ideologies are diametrically opposed to one another and it is hard to imagine how these could be synthesised - how could Marxist ideas about the need to create a classless society be synthesised with the conservative ideology that hierarchy is beneficial/essential?

What do feminists see gender inequality as?

The fundamental division in society and patriarchal ideology as playing a key role in legitimating it.

How can so many different ideologies exist to justify gender difference?

Because gender difference is a feature of all societies.

What does Marks describe?

How ideas from science have been used to justify excluding women from education.

What have patriarchal ideologies in science been embodied irreligious beliefs and practices to do?

To define women as inferior. There are numerous examples from a wide range of religions of the idea that women are ritually impure or unclean, particularly because of childbirth or menstruation. This has given rise to purification rituals like ‘churching‘ after a women has given birth.

Do all elements of religious belief systems subordinate women?

No. for example, there is evidence that, before the emergence of the monotheistic patriarchal religions, matriarchal religions with females deities were widespread, with female priests anf the celebration of fertility cults.