Ideology: Comparative and Cultural Status

by Rejai,Mostafa

• ISBN13: 9780202309934
• ISBN10: 0202309932
• eBook ISBN(s): 9781351513814
• Format: Nonspecific Binding
• Copyright: 2009-06-15
• Publisher: Routledge
• More Book Details

Summary

Since the early 1950s, the "decline of ideology" hypothesishas commanded a great deal of attention in the intellectualcommunity at large. The controversy has taken bothempirical and polemical turns. This book concentrateson the empirical literature, offering both original contributionsand previously published papers of outstandingimportance. Selections were made to give full play tofreshness of view and diversity of sources.The book presents the hypothesis of ideological declineas set forth by two of its major spokesmen, bringstogether essays that subject this hypothesis to empiricaltests in both Western and non-Western contexts, and thenpresents both positive and negative evaluations of thehypothesis. Avoiding an ex cathedra definition of ideology,the editor and contributors scrutinize the nature ofideology and its workings and suggest approaches to thecomparative treatment of ideologies.This book offers the first clear and wide-rangingoverview of the putative decline of ideology, a conceptburdened by a history of emotional argumentation.Changes in the function of ideology in the Soviet Union,the United States, Western Europe, and Japan are examined,and the ideological dimension of student movementsof the 1960s is taken into account. Ideology: Comparativeand Cultural Status is an expertly edited presentation ofcontrasting views of a vital topic. It is ideally suited foruse in a variety of courses in the area of political thoughtand political sociology.

Author Biography

Mostafa Rejai is distinguished professor emeritus of political science at Miami University, Ohio. Some of his most recent books include Concepts of Leadership in Western Political Thought, Leaders and Leadership: An Appraisal of Theory and Thought, and World Military Leaders: A Collective and Comparative Analysis (all with Kay Phillips). His articles have appeared in several scholarly journals.

Table of Contents

Preface	p. vii
Political Ideology: Theoretical and Comparative Perspectives	p. 1
The Hypothesis
	p. 33
The Passing of Fanaticism	p. 36
The End of Ideology?	p. 47
Empirical and Comparative Perspectives
	p. 67
Europe: The Politics of Collective Bargaining	p. 76
Finland: Institutionalized Radicalism	p. 116
The Netherlands: From Politics to Administration	p. 140
The United States: Politics of Affluence	p. 160
Japan: The Erosion of Ideology	p. 207
The Soviet Union: Ideology in Retreat	p. 221
Critique
Introductory Note	p. 241
A Dissenting View	p. 243
Empirical Relevance of the Hypothesis of Decline	p. 268
Anti-Ideological Thought in France	p. 286
The Student Movement and the End of the "End of Ideology"	p. 302
Toward a Radical Alternative	p. 311
For Further Reading	p. 317
Index	p. 323
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