Chapter 13: Ideology (Sodaro)

what is ideology

Ideology is a coherent set of ideas that typically includes:

1. A theory about political relationships and the role of the state

2. A notion of what constitutes political legitimacy and the highest political values

3. An action program indicating the goals.ideals, policies, and tactics to be pursued by the state, political elites, and the masses

Why is Ideology important?

Ideology provides a cohesive worldview to individuals and nations, allowing them to make value of political events, institutions, and decisions.

• Ideologies can unite people around shared principles, but they can also be sources of division when competing ideologies clash.

Liberalism

Liberalism essentially means democracy. In its

oldest and broadest definition, liberalism refers to a system ofgovernment that guarantees liberty. In the earliest manifestation of

liberalism it posed a direct challenge to government by absolute

monarchs and aristocracies, expressing the basic idea that the

power of the state should be limited and that certain freedoms

should be granted to the people by law.

Social Liberalism [US]

Social Liberalism means active government intervention in the economy and society for the purpose of promoting economic growth, community welfare, and social justice.

Conservatism [US]

Conservatism in the US is the heir to the classical

liberal tradition of minimal government interference in

the economy.

Liberalism and Conservatism in the around the World (two meanings outside the US)

• First meaning: Liberalism favors political and economic freedom as opposed to authoritarianism and socialism.

• Second meaning: Liberalism, particularly in Europe

  and Latin America, is often associated with center-left policies that emphasize social justice, government intervention in the economy, and the welfare state, aligning more closely with what Americans call progressivism or social democracy.

Conservatism also assumes different meanings in different contexts

●First meaning: Conservatism means resistance to

any kind of change unless absolutely necessary.

●Second meaning: Today;s conservatives favor

democracy and the market economy.

Socialism

• Socialism emerged as a reaction to the excesses of the

  industrial revolution and free enterprise.

• Socialism in its original nineteenth century conception,

  therefore was understood as a political and economic

  system in which private enterprise is abolished and replaced

  by some form of common ownership of factories, farms, and

  other productive enterprises.

free enterprise system

Capitalism

having common ownership of the economy

Communism

Utopian socialists

term that derived from Sir Thomas More’s design for an ideal society in his book Utopia.

Marxism

A social, economic, and political philosophy

developed by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels,

centered on the theory of historical

materialism and class struggle, arguing that

history is driven by economic forces and the

conflict between social classes, ultimately

leading to a communist revolution.

Hegel's dialectic

is a philosophical

framework that describes how ideas

and concepts evolve through a

process of thesis, antithesis, and

synthesis, leading to a higher level of

understanding.

marx vs hegel

hegel -Philosophical Idealist who believed in spiritual forces like a deity.

marxist - philosophical materialist who rejected spiritual essences.

Alienation

Private property, in particular, stood out as a

principal cause of “Alienation” which Marx

described as “the self-estrangement of man

from himself.

”

who wrote Communist Manifesto.

Marx refined his central notion that the

principal motive forces in society and politics

are economic in nature. He was joined by

Friedrich Engels in this endaevor.One of their

famous tracts was the Communist

Manifesto.

Marx developed two critical ideas that defined

what dialectical materialism meant in

practice.

1. Economic relations condition everything else that happens on human affairs.

2. Class conflict

Bourgeoisie

Bourgeoisie refers to the capitalist class in

the industrializing countries. The term derived

from the term bourg, the old German and

French word for town or city.

proletariat

Marx used proletariat when referring to the

industrial working class.

-

Proletariat are workers or

working-class people, regarded

collectively.

Monopolization

The most successful capitalists drive their competitors out of business, a process Marx called Monopolization.

Lumpenproletariat

The proletariat swell beyond the

capitalist system’s ability to employ them.

The unemployed grow into a vast “reserve

army of the proletariat” that Marx called

Lumpenproletariat, the “proletariat in rags.

”

Marx’s view, electoral democracy in capitalist societies

In Marx’s view, electoral democracy in

capitalist societies is a sham that holds out

no hope for the working class; it is nothing

more than a “bourgeois democracy,” thoroughly manipulated by the capitalist class

for it;s own benefits.

The Socialist Revolution in the Manifesto

Scientific Socialism.

Scientific Socialism. In the Manifesto, Marx

and Engels proclaimed that the destruction of

capitalism and the victory of the proletariat

were inevitable

Soviet-Style Communism

Communism came to Russia as a well

orchestrated coup d’etat engineered by a

highly centralized political party, the

Bolsheviks.

Leninism

The key idea of Leninism is the primacy of the Communist party.

Social Democracy

Social Democracy is a combination of

economic socialism and political democracy.

Fascism

In most instances, fascism is a response to a specific

combination of problems that face certain societies at a

particular juncture in their historical development. Ethnic

diversity and long term unemployment are typical of the

problems that spark neo-fascist resentments, particularly

among poorly educated white males

Fascism consist of the following four features:

1. Hypernationalism

2. Racism

3. Totalitarianism

4. Mass MobilIzation Through Propaganda and

   Coercion

II. Religion as political Ideology: Islam

Islam has emerged as the most politically active religious

force in the contemporary world.

Origins

●Muhammad's Death and the Succession

Crisis

The First Caliphs:

A group of Muhammad's

companions chose his close friend Abu Bakr

as the first caliph (khalifa), meaning

"successor" or "representative.

" However,

some believed Muhammad had designated

his cousin and son-in-law Ali as his rightful

heir.

The Sunni-Shia Split:

The disagreement over succession led to a major schism within Islam. Those who supported Abu Bakr and the subsequent caliphs became known as Sunnis (meaning "followers of the Sunna," or tradition of the Prophet). Those who believed Ali was the rightful successor became known

as Shia (or Shiites), meaning "partisans of Ali. "

The Abbasid Caliphate

The Abbasid dynasty, claiming descent from Muhammad's

uncle, eventually overthrew the Umayyad

caliphate. However, they also turned against

the Shia, leading to further conflict.

Islam as a Way of Life

Islam is presented

as an all-encompassing way of life, where

religion and politics are intertwined. The

Islamic community (ummah) is both religious

and political, governed by Islamic law

(sharia).

Theocracy vs. Reality

The original Islamic

doctrine suggests a theocratic government

with Allah as the source of legitimacy.

However, the vast expansion of the Islamic

world led to diverse states and empires ruled

by Muslims who were not religious

authorities. This created a tension between

the ideal of a theocracy and the practical

realities of governance.

Sunni and Shia Differences

The excerpt

contrasts the Sunni and Shia clergy

structures. Shia clergy has a tiered hierarchy

with "grand ayatollahs" at the top, while Sunni

clergy is less structured, allowing for more

flexibility in religious and political doctrine.

Traditionalism

Emphasizes peace and

coexistence, but views Islamic law as binding

on all Muslims, even though interpretations

may differ.

Modernism (Reformism)

Advocates for the

separation of religion and state, with Islamic

law limited to personal and religious matters.

Fundamentalism (Islamism)

Favors a state based on a strict interpretation of Islamic law,

including harsh punishments.

what is the most prominent general school of Sunni

fundamentalism

The most prominent general school of Sunni

fundamentalism is Salafism, which calls for a

return to the "pure" form of Islam practiced by

the early generations of Muslims.

• Wahhabism

• Wahhabism, founded by Muhammad Ibn

  al-Wahhab, emphasizes a strict interpretation

  of the Quran and Islamic law.

The Arabic word jihad means…

●Jihad of the heart: The internal struggle

against sin.

●Jihad of the tongue: Speaking out against

evil and advocating for good.

●Jihad of the sword: Physical struggle,

including warfare.

who issued a fatwa

Osama bin Laden issued a fatwa in 1998

calling for Muslims to kill Americans and

seize their wealth. This fatwa was considered

an extreme interpretation of jihad by most

Muslims.

How does islamic authorities view jihad

Most Islamic authorities do not view jihad as

justifying indiscriminate terrorism against

non-Muslims.

jihadists

The term "jihadists" is used to describe

Islamic militants who promote violence

against non-Muslims.

Root Causes of Suicide Terrorism:

1. Robert Pape's Argument:

2. Role of Religion:

Islamic exceptionalism

(the idea that Islamic countries cannot build democracies)

will likely continue.

The Left-Right Spectrum

Left: Utopian socialism, anarchism, Marxism,

Soviet-style communism, social democracy,

social-welfare liberalism.

Right: Liberal democracy, democratic

conservatism, monarchy, fascism, religious

regimes.

The Political Horseshoe

the extreme left and extreme right share similarities and may converge.

Daniel Bell's Argument

Daniel Bell's

hypothesis that the era of intense ideological

conflict was ending due to post-World War II

economic changes in advanced capitalist

countries.

Post-Industrialism

Post-Industrialism: Bell argued that the shift

from industrialism to a post-industrial society

was undermining the basis of the

capitalist-socialist ideological clash.

Evidences supporting the Hypothesis

A. Fall of Soviet-Style Communism

B. Economic Liberalization in Former

Communist Countries

C. Economic Reforms in Developing

Countries

Evidence Against the Hypothesis:

A. Continued Ideological Opposition

B. Russia's Uncertain Path

C. China's Authoritarian Model

D. Muslim Ideological Alternatives

E. Potential for New Ideologies

"Wave" of Democracy and Markets:

There seems to be a trend towards

democracy and market-oriented

economies globally.