Political Ideologies

This informative and widely-used text is now available in a third edition. Building on the success of previous editions, it continues to provide a clear and accessible introduction to the complexities of political ideologies. The latest edition of Political Ideologies: introduces and considers the future of all the most widely studied ideologies: liberalism; conservatism; socialism; democracy; nationalism; fascism; ecologism and feminism sets each ideology clearly within its historical and political context includes a new final chapter that examines the impact of recent theoretical developments of ideologies and charts the challenges that they face in the twenty-first century has been fully revised and up-dated and provides an annotated guide for further reading.

"Political Ideologies provides a broad-ranging introduction to both the classical and contemporary political ideologies. Adopting a global outlook, it introduces readers to ideologies' increasingly global reach and the different national versions of these ideologies. Importantly, ideologies are presented as frameworks of interpretation and political commitment, encouraging readers to evaluate how ideologies work in practice, the problematic links between ideas and political action, and the impact of ideologies. Regular learning features encourage readers to think critically about ideologies, and view them as competing and contestable ways of interpreting the world. A unique 'stop and think' feature calls for readers to reflect on their own ideological beliefs." -- Provided by publisher.

Brief and accessible, Political Ideologies follows the evolution of political thought over 300 years. Organized chronologically, this text examines each major ideology within a political, historical, economic, and social context. Leon Baradat's skillful prose ensures that students obtain a clear understanding of how ideas are influencing the political realities of our time.

Political Ideologies and Political Parties in America puts ideology front and center in the discussion of party coalition change. Treating ideology as neither a nuisance nor a given, the analysis describes the development of the modern liberal and conservative ideologies that form the basis of our modern political parties. Hans Noel shows that liberalism and conservatism emerged as important forces independent of existing political parties. These ideologies then reshaped parties in their own image. Modern polarization can thus be explained as the natural outcome of living in a period, perhaps the first in our history, in which two dominant ideologies have captured the two dominant political parties.

Ideology is a ubiquitous, continuously innovating dimension of human experience, but its character and impact are notoriously difficult to pinpoint within political and social life. Political Ideology in Parties, Policy, and Civil Society demonstrates that the reach and significance of political ideology can be most effectively understood by employing a multidisciplinary approach. Offering analyses that are simultaneously empirical and interpretive – in fields as diverse as development assistance policy and game theory – the contributors to this volume reveal ideology’s penetration in varied spheres, including government activity, party competition, agricultural and working-class communities, and academic life.

Now in its fourth edition, Political Ideologies: An Introduction continues to be the best introductory textbook for students of political ideologies. Completely revised and updated throughout, this edition features: A comprehensive introduction to all of the most important ideologies Brand new chapters on multiculturalism, anarchism, and the growing influence of religion on politics More contemporary examples of twenty-first-century iterations of liberalism, socialism, conservatism, fascism, green political theory, nationalism, and feminism Enhanced discussion of the end of ideology debates and emerging theories of ideological formation Six new contributors. Accessible and packed with both historical and contemporary examples, this is the most useful textbooks for scholars and students of political ideologies. The contributors to this volume have all taught or carried out research at the School of Politics, International Studies and Philosophy of Queen’s University, Belfast, or have close research connections with the School.

"In everyday usage, 'ideology' tends to be a pejorative term, synonymous with the dogmatic or fanatical. This is not the sense in which the term is used in this book. Nor does this book adopt the instrumental approach to ideology, common among social scientists and Marxists, which sees ideology as socially 'determined', rather than as a body of relatively coherent and comprehensive beliefs, of interest in their own right. It is this last feature of ideologies which this book focuses on - namely ideologies' key assumptions and themes, their instrinsic content. This is not to deny that there are interesting questions to be asked about the social origins and role of ideologies. However, these questions would require a separate book to do them justice. Moreover, we live in an age of 'hyper-change'. Suddenly, in the last decade or so, the ideologies which were in the ascendant in the early twentieth century seem to have entered terminal decline, whilst other ideologies have been rejuvenated, and newer ones have grown in force. In general, these changes have undermined the left more than the right, though the rise of new ideologies throughout the twentieth century has helped show the weaknesses classifying ideologies by the traditional left-right spectrum."

In the realm of political discourse there is a distinct gap in understanding between Russia and the West. To an outsider, the ideas that animate the actions of Russia's ruling elite, opposition, and civil society - from the motivations driving Russia's political actors to the class structure and international and domestic constraints that shape Russia's political thinking - remain shrouded in mystery. Contrary to the view that a bleak discursive uniformity reigns in Vladimir Putin's Russia, Political Ideologies in Contemporary Russia shows that the country is engaging in serious theoretical debates across a wide spectrum of modern ideologies including liberalism, nationalism, feminism, and multiculturalism. Elena Chebankova argues that the nation is fragmented and the state seeks to balance the various ideological movements to ensure that none dominates. She shows that each of the main ideological trends is far from uniform, but the major opposition is between liberalism and traditionalism. The pluralistic picture she describes contests many current portrayals of Russia as an authoritarian or even totalitarian state. Offering an alternative to the Western lens through which to view global politics, Political Ideologies in Contemporary Russia is a major contribution to our understanding of this world power.