Riddle Me This….
Is everyone a
political thinker?
Why, or why
not?
Freedom Rights
Liberal
Conservative Communist
Justice
Socialist
Fascist
Do you think
these phrases
are used
Equality Fairness
accurately?
Which cartoon illustrates “equality”?
Enquiry Question: What is ideology?
Learning Outcomes
• To explain the role of ideas
• To understand key concepts of ideology
• To identify and describe a range of ideologies
Study Skills
Cornell Note Taking
Enquiry Question
Note Taking
(for each lesson/topic)
(main ideas,
explanations,
analysis,
examples,
dates, people,
Headings, places,
themes, diagrams,
subtitles, statistics)
sections
Key vocabulary and Summary in your own words
definitions
Politics App Store
Apply what you have learned!
YOUR TASK:
• To use the Cornell
method of note taking
• Note taking from
Heywood (p1-5)
“The Role of Ideas”
• Essential Question:
What is the role of
ideas?
Learning Outcomes
• To explain the role of ideas
• To understand key concepts of ideology
• To identify and describe a range of ideologies
What is an “ideology”?
“Ideology is the most elusive concept
in the whole social sciences.”
- David McLellan (1995)
How far do you agree with the quote?
Not at all – I Somewhat – I Completely – I
could write a could probably would have no
definition of write a definition idea what an
ideology but I’m not sure ideology is
Thinking Point
What is an “ideology”?
Definition 1 Definition 2
A political belief system Ideas that situate the
An action-orientated set of individual within a social
political ideas context and generate a sense
The ideas of the ruling class of collective belonging
The world view of a particular An officially sanctioned set of
social class or group ideas used to legitimise a
political system or regime
Political ideas that embody or
articulate social interests An all-embracing political
doctrine that claims a
Ideas that propagate false monopoly of truth
consciousness amongst the
exploited or oppressed An abstract and highly
systematic set of political ideas
Thinking Point
Characteristics of ideologies
• a coherent set of views on politics
• produced by intellectual elites
• dissemination among the mass population
• subject to alteration
• susceptible to distortion and oversimplification
• powerful motivators of human behaviour
• manipulated by political movement leaders
BUT….the idea of ideology was not always so straightforward…
Thinking Point
Evolution of the idea of ‘ideology’
The term was created during the French Revolution by Antoine
Destutt de Tracy (1754- 1836), and first used in public in 1796 to
attempt to explain “a new science of ideas” or an idea-ology, like in
biology, or psychology.
“Ideology is the most elusive concept
in the whole social sciences.”
- David McLellan (1995)
How far do you agree with the quote?
Not at all – I Somewhat – I Completely – I
could write a could probably would have no
definition of write a definition idea what an
ideology but I’m not sure ideology is
Key Definition
Ideology
An ideology is a more or less coherent set of ideas that
provides the basis for organised political action, whether this
is intended to preserve, modify or overthrow the existing
system of power. All ideologies therefore have the following
features:
a) They offer an account of the existing order, usually in the
form of a “world view”
b) b) They advance a model of a desired future, a vision of
the “good society”
c) c) They explain how political change can and should be
brought about – how to get from (a) to (b)
Heywood, A (2007). Political Ideologies – An Introduction
Think of ideology as a pair of goggles!
What ideology has already influenced your
way of thinking and looking at the world?
Learning Outcomes
• To explain the role of ideas
• To understand key concepts of ideology
• To identify and describe a range of ideologies
How many Political Ideologies can you
identify?
Analysing Ideologies
What are the key features of…
LIBERALISM CONSERVATISM SOCIALISM
Individualism Tradition Community
Rationalism Human Cooperation
Freedom imperfection Equality
Justice Organic Class politics
Tolerance society Common
Hierarchy and ownership
authority
Property
Analysing Ideologies
What are the key features of…
How are the ideologies similar and different?
YOUR TASK:
How do the three ideologies view:
–human nature?
–the role of the individual?
–the role of society?
–private property?
Learning Outcomes
• To explain the role of ideas
• To understand key concepts of ideology
• To identify and describe a range of ideologies
Political Thinking
Identifying ideologies
Liberals dream of equal rights, YOUR TASK:
Conservatives live in a world
gone by, • How many political
Socialists preach of a promised ideologies can you
land,[...] identify?
Unionists tell you when to
strike, • Make a list of your
Generals tell you when to suggestions.
fight,
Preachers teach you wrong
from right,
They'll feed you when you're
born,
And use you all your life.
— The Kinks, "Uncle Son"
Homework
Reading and Note Taking, Heywood, p5-16
What is ideology?
Concepts of ideology
Ideology, truth and power
Further Reading
List of Political Ideologies
*hyperlinks in document to Wiki page for each ideology
Extra Challenge:
Article: POLITICAL IDEOLOGIES – SUMMARIES
(Heywood)
Ideology Description
This ideology is in a sense the ideology of the ‘industrialised West’. It has a focus on a
LIBERALISM particular set of values: the individual, freedom, reason, justice, toleration.
Central beliefs of this ideology are based around the ideas of: tradition, human
CONSERVATISM imperfection, organic society, hierarchy and authority, property.
This ideology emphasises the key themes of community, cooperation, equality, class
SOCIALISM politics, and common ownership.
This ideology was born in the period between the first world wars and emerged most
FASCISM dramatically in Italy and Germany. It is a difficult ideology to define, but some its
common themes include: a reaction against rationalism, a belief that life is a struggle
and the strongest survive, elitism, extreme nationalism.
The defining feature of this ideology is its opposition to the state and the institutions of
government and law. Their main arguments is that authority is an offence against the
ANARCHISM principles of freedom and equality. They believe in a natural goodness of humans, and
that without a state governing humans would naturally fall into a state of cooperation
with one another.
This ideology rejects the distinction between politics and religion; for them ‘politics is
religion’ (Khomeini, leader of the Islamic Revolution of Iran in 1979). This ideology
RELIGIOUS maintains a commitment to ideas and values that are seen as basic of fundamental.
FUNDAMENTALISM Most often it turns its back on modernity, as it seen to be the root of decay in our
world, where values are lacking and moral social fabric has disintegrated.
NATIONALISM This ideology includes a firm belief in the idea that the ‘nation’ should be the central
principle of political organisation.
This important ideology changed the focus of ideology from looking at the public to the
FEMINISM private sphere. That is, rather than looking at the politics of the state level, they started
to look at politics of the individual. Key to this was looking at the power relationship
that exists between men and women.
