Download Classifying Ideologies

 All Ideologies have been influenced by
historical traditions and overlapping ‘ism’
 Classifying ideologies helps us understand
them
 Two common methods:
– Left-Right continuum
– Political-Economic Grid
Roots of the Left-Right
Continuum
 Evolved from the
French Revolution
 Based on seating
arrangement in the
national assembly
 Following the French Revolution the left and
right came to represent attitudes about change
and the status quo.
 Those who demanded change(Radicals and
Liberals) were on the left.
 In the center were the moderates who generally
supported status quo and minor change.
 On the right, Conservatives favoring
maintaining status quo, but Reactionaries on
the extreme right, called for a return to the
ways of the past.
Left-Right in the
th
20
century
 A More comprehensive view of the Modern Spectrum
Examining Political attitudes
 What should the nature of Political Authority be in any
society?
Examining Economic Attitudes
To what extent should economic equality be emphasized
Criticism of the Left-Right
Continuum
 Less suited to analyzing beliefs and
relationships that exist in the 20th century.
 Ideologies such as Communism and
Socialism have been substantially revised in
the face of differing views held by leaders,
evolving economic conditions and changing
conditions.
For Example . . .
In theory Communism(emphasizing public ownership) would be
On the left, Fascism(emphasizing private ownership) would be
on the right.
In practice . . .
States based on both Ideologies have established strong Gov’ts
controlled by one political party or one strong leader who
suppressed opponents, used terror and restricted rights.
 In order to more accurately place
Communism and Fascism, the traditional
continuum had to be modified.
Political-Economic Grid
 The following grid is a more appropriate
approach to representing political and
economic ideologies in relation to one
another.
Definitions
 Communism: A political and economic
system based on community or state
ownership of wealth, property, and the
means of production, with each person
working for according to ability and
receiving according to need.
 Socialism: An economic and political
system in which society as a whole rather
than private individuals own all property
and operate all businesses.
 Liberalism: A philosophy that supports
guarantees of individual freedom, political
change, and social reform.
 Conservatism: A philosophy that supports
the traditional order and resists political and
social change.
 Fascism: Authoritarian political beliefs,
characterized by extreme nationalism,
reliance on military power to achieve
national goals, and a state-controlled private
enterprise economy.
Questions . . .
 Why was the left-right continuum more
complicated in the 20th century?
 What are the strengths and weaknesses of
the traditional continuum?
 What are the advantages and disadvantages
of the political-economic grid to better
understand political and economic systems?