CH2: POLITICAL IDEAS AND IDEOLOGIES - CONCEPTS

ideology

coherent set of ideas that provides a basis for organized political action; offers a description of status quo, prescription of an ideal future, and action which outlines how political change can be brought about

rationalism

belief that the world can be understood and explained through the exercise of human reason

pragmatism

theory or practice that places primary emphasis on practical circumstances and goals; distrust of abstract ideas

meta-ideology

a higher or second-order ideology that lays down the grounds on which ideological debate can take place

progress

human advancement based on the accumulation of knowledge and wisdom; moving forward

meritocracy

rule by the talented; principle that rewards and positions should be distributed on the basis of ability

atomism

belief that society is made up of a collection of largely self-sufficient individuals who owe little or nothing to one another

economic liberalism

a belief in the market as a self-regulating mechanism that tends naturally to deliver general prosperity and opportunities for all

big government

interventionist government, usually understood to imply economic management and social regulation.

redistribution

narrowing of material inequalities brought about through a combination of progressive taxation and welfare provision

ancien regime

old order; absolutist structures that predated the French Revolution

paternalism

attitude or policy that demonstrates care for those unable to help themselves; (supposed) relationship between father and child

noblesse oblige

obligations of the nobility; responsibility to guide and protect those less fortunate or less privileged

Toryism

ideological stance within conservatism characterized by a belief in hierarchy, an emphasis on tradition, and support for duty and organicism

natural aristocracy

the idea that talent and leadership are innate or inbred qualities that cannot be acquired through effort or self-advancement

Christian democracy

ideological tendency within European conservatism, characterized by commitment to social-market principles and qualified interventionism

nanny state

a state with extensive social responsibilities; the term implies that welfare programs are unwarranted and demeaning to the individual

permissiveness

the willingness to allow people to make their own moral choices; suggests that there are no authoritative values.

revisionism

the modification of original or established beliefs; can imply the abandonment of principle or a loss of conviction

Leninism

belief in the need of a 'vanguard' party to raise the proletariat to class consciousness

Stalinism

structures of USSR characterized by centrally placed economy linked to systematic and brutal political oppression

dialectical materialism

process of historical change that is not evolutionary but revolutionary; the existing base and superstructure (thesis) would come into conflict with new technological innovations, generating growing opposition to the existing order (antithesis)-- this would culminate in revolution, overthrowing the old base and superstructure (synthesis); deterministic form of Marxism that dominated intellectual life in orthodox communist states

historical materialism

the Marxist theory that holds that economic conditions (class system) ultimately structure law, politics, culture and other aspects of social existence

dictatorship of the proletariat

a temporary proletarian state, established to prevent counter-revolution and oversee the transition from capitalism to communism

perestreika

restructuring (Russian); slogan that reefers to the attempt to liberalize and democratize the Soviet system within a communist framework

fundamentalist socialism

a form of socialism that seeks to abolish capitalism and replace it with a qualitatively different kind of society

Third way

alternative to both capitalism and socialism; new or modernized social democracy; alternative to old-style social democracy and neoliberalism, rejecting the power imbalance in favor of the state in the former and in favor of the market in the latter

anarcho-capitalism

anarchist tradition which holds that unregulated market competition can and should be applied to all social arrangements, rendering the state unnecessary

mutualism

system of fair and equitable exchange; trading of goods and services without profiteering or exploitation

anarcho-communism

anarchist tradition which takes common ownership as the sole reliable basis for social solidarity, thereby linking statelessness to classlessness

liberal feminism

feminist tradition whose core goal is equal access for women and men to the public realm, based on the belief of genderless personhood

socialist feminism

feminist tradition that seeks to restructure economic life to achieve gender equality, based in links between patriarchy and capitalism

sustainable development

evelopment that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs

weak sustainability

takes economic growth to be sustainable but simply insists that growth levels must be limited to ensure that environmental costs do not threaten the prosperity of future generations

strong sustainability

rejects the pro-growth implications of weak sustainability, and focuses on the need to preserve 'natural capital'

radical feminism

feminist tradition that aims to overthrow patriarchy through a radical transformation of all spheres of life, but especially the personal

anthropocentrism

a belief that human needs and interests are of overriding moral and philosophical importance

ecologism

political doctrine or ideology that is based on the essential link between humankind and the natural world; adopts biocentric approach in contrast to environmentalism which is concerned with protecting nature ultimately for human benefit

holism

belief that the whole is more important than its parts; understanding is gained only by studying relationships among its parts

world government

the idea of all of humankind united under one common political authority

fundamentalism

style of though wherein certain principles are recognized as essential truths with unchallengeable and overriding authority; doctrinal certainty;

secularism

belief that religion should not intrude into worldly affairs; separation of state and institutionalized religion

populism

political movement/tradition characterized by a claim to support the common people in the face of corrupt economic or political elites; instincts and wishes of the people provide the principal legitimate guide to political action