POLI 410 Lecture Notes - Lecture 12: Alexis De Tocqueville, Post-Structuralism, False Consciousness
15 Jun 2018
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POLI410 Political Ideology in Canada Part 2 Lecture Notes
Ideology and Political Culture
Ideology
- 3 different schools
o the Behaviourialist tradition: mostly in the 1960s, dominates a lot of post-cold
war American sociology and political science
▪ a pejorative view of ideology
▪ contrasts ideology with pragmatism
▪ critiques: void of any sort of power analysis and evacuates the discussion
of power from ideology
o Marxism and the idea of power and the dominant class: reinvigorate discussion
about ideology with the notions of power and in particular about notions of the
dominant class
▪ Tool of legitimation for the dominant class
▪ About a false consciousness: that ideology is sort of a tool of dominant
class and we are under its chains
▪ Ideology reproduces itself and reifies existing power dynamics and
structures
▪ Dismisses other competing ideologies
▪ Still a type of pejorative meaning
o Post-structuralism and the idea that power is everywhere
▪ teas eethig apat
▪ not just the dominant class but ideology is everywhere
▪ reproduced by the mundane routine practices
▪ eg. Bathrooms and gender difference: physical structure,
• gendered, stalls, parlours, social
• structures the way we self-care
▪ ideologies of gender difference includes routine practice such as going to
the bathroom
▪ not just dominant classes that reproduce ideology but we do it ourselves
through daily practices
o part of the power of thinking about ideology is that we need to be able to quickly
decide what is crucial to political life (Eagleton)
▪ what things raise larger questions about political life?
1. Institutions
- how institutions shape political behaviour and processes
- the debate about electoral reform
o because of FPTP breeds more moderate multi-party system, means that
Canadians are more moderate in their views
- how institutions are set up and how they create behaviours of our politicians
2. Behaviourialist
find more resources at oneclass.com
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- attitudes and behaviours and the link between them through scientific methods
o eg. Surveys and data, correlation through this
Political Culture
- Elkins and Simeon 1979
- Nelson Wiseman 2011
o The way of life of a political community
o A national character
▪ For Tocqueville, it is the habits and minds of a people
▪ The term itself is relatively vintage, but the concept and its application
are ancient
Wiseman/Political Culture
- distinction in political culture and ideology
- controversial in the field of political science due to the emphasis on survey methods nad
institutions
- political culture: the way of life in a political community
o can me a smaller/activist community or Canada as a whole
o the norms that dictate political life within a given community
- term of political culture relatively vintage, used in 1970s
- but the concept of it is relatively ancient, much later
o Machiavelli talking about norms
o Toueille: atioal haate
- Tocqueville: the habits of the hearts and minds of Americans
- Wiseman: Enables us to see and make sense of our physical and social situations
o Similar to ideology
o A way to enter into examining politics
o Helps us understand why certain institutions may emerge
Political culture vs ideology
- For Wiseman these are distinct, yet heavily inter-related concepts
o Culture: an ordering system of symbols
o Ideology: an ordering of symbolic terms
- Wiseman sees ideology as one part of the broader concept of political culture
- Similarities
o Both are abstractions
o Both deal with fundamental values and questions about political life
o They are very related to each other – shape each other
o Both mental constructs
- Differences
o Culture is slower to change (more like climate than weather)
o Culture is cross-generational
o Culture cannot solely be understood on a theoretical plan (like liberalism for
example)
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Poli410 political ideology in canada part 2 lecture notes. How institutions shape political behaviour and processes the debate about electoral reform: because of fptp breeds more moderate multi-party system, means that. How institutions are set up and how they create behaviours of our politicians: behaviourialist. Attitudes and behaviours and the link between them through scientific methods: eg. surveys and data, correlation through this. Distinction in political culture and ideology controversial in the field of political science due to the emphasis on survey methods nad institutions. But the concept of it is relatively ancient, much later: machiavelli talking about norms, to(cid:272)(cid:395)ue(cid:448)ille: (cid:862)(cid:374)atio(cid:374)al (cid:272)ha(cid:396)a(cid:272)te(cid:396)(cid:863) Tocqueville: the habits of the hearts and minds of americans. Wiseman: enables us to see and make sense of our physical and social situations: similar to ideology, a way to enter into examining politics, helps us understand why certain institutions may emerge. For wiseman these are distinct, yet heavily inter-related concepts: culture: an ordering system of symbols.
