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CHAPTER 1
VIEWS OF POLITICAL IDEOLOGY This book is primarily a study of political ideologies, rather than an analysis of the nature of ideology. Much confusion stems from the fact that, though obviously related, ‘ideology’ and ‘ideologies’ are quite different things to study. To examine ‘ideology’ is to consider a particular type of political thought, distinct from, say, political science or political philosophy. The study of political ideology thus involves reflection on questions about the nature, role and significance of this category of thought, and about which sets of political ideas and arguments should be classified as ideologies. For instance, is ideology true or false, liberating or oppressive, or inevitable or merely transitory? Similarly, are green ideology and multiculturalism, by virtue of their relatively narrow focus, ideologies in the same sense as liberalism and socialism, both of which offer a comprehensive vision of the desired future? On the other hand, to study ‘ideologies’ is to be concerned with analysing the content of political thought, to be interested in the ideas, doctrines and theories that have been advancedby andwithin the various ideological traditions. For example, what can liberalism tell us about freedom? Why have socialists traditionally supported equality? How do anarchists defend the idea of a stateless society? Why have fascists regarded struggle and war as healthy? In order to examine such ‘content’ issues, however, it is necessary to consider the overarching ‘type’ of political thought we are dealing with. Before discussing the characteristic ideas and doctrines of the so-called ideologies, we need to reflect on why these sets of ideas have been categorized as ideologies. More importantly, what does the categorization tell us? What can we learn about, for instance, liberalism, socialism, feminism and fascism from the fact that they are classified as ideologies? The first problemconfronting any discussion of the nature of ideology is that there is no settled or agreed definition of the term, only a collection of rival definitions. As David McLellan (1995) commented, ‘Ideology is the most elusive concept in the whole of the social sciences.’ Few political terms have been the subject of such deep and impassioned controversy. This has occurred for two reasons. In the first place, as all concepts of ideology acknowledge a link between theory and practice, the term uncovers highly contentious debates about the role of ideas in politics and the relationship between beliefs and theories on the one hand, and material life or political conduct on the other. Second, the concept of ideology has not been able to stand apart from the ongoing struggle between and among political ideologies. For much of its history, the term ‘ideology’ has been used as a political weapon, a device with which to condemn or criticize rival sets of ideas or belief systems. Not until the second half of the twentieth century was a neutral and apparently objective concept of ideology widely employed, and even then disagreements persisted over the social role and political significance of ideology. Among the meanings that have been attached to ideology are the following: z z a political belief system z z an action-orientated set of political ideas z z the ideas of the ruling class z z the world-view of a particular social class or social group z z political ideas that embody or articulate class or social interests z z ideas that propagate false consciousness among the exploited or oppressed z z ideas that situate the individual within a social context and generate a sense of collective belonging
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