Ideological Analysis Research Articles

Walter White: From «Apply Yourself» to «Say my Name». Aspects of Political Theory in «Breaking Bad»

This text should be understood as an interdisciplinary inquiry into one of the most successful US TV series: Breaking Bad (BB). I use political theory analysis, plot analysis that one could understand as textual analysis of the story, and my interpretations of the series’ main characters. In the first chapter, I present a summary of the story of Walter White and how his decisions affect his family. In the second chapter, I analyse BB according to Thomas Hobbes’ Leviathan. What Hobbes meant with his famous saying that man is man’s wolf, thus a deadly reciprocal threat of all against all comes to life in Walter becoming a full-fledged criminal, murder and deception now the tools of his new chosen craft. Walter is breaking bad, ignoring societal norms and ethical values, pursuing relentlessly his plans of making money for his family, enjoying his new self as a powerful provider because that is what men do: they provide. The third chapter is dedicated to an analysis how Hannah Arendt’s definitions of power, strength, authority, violence and judgement can explain Walter’s change from Paulus to Saulus. In the conclusion, I shall present my thoughts about the series and answer the following research questions: first, why is the global public still so smitten with Walter White? Second, what can one learn from BB for our contemporary conditio humana in the 21st century? Third, is Walter White the master of his life, thus self-determined (Selbstbestimmung), or is he dominated by forces outside of his own free will (Fremdbestimmung)?

Radical Democratic Model of Politics as a Response to the Problem of Refugees Political Integration

This article is devoted to the analysis of the origins of the unsatisfactory situation concerning refugees, and searching for a new model of emancipatory politics that will be useful to overcome this situation. The main thesis of the article is that the positions articulated by G. Agamben, J. Ranciere, and J. Butler can be combined in a radical democratic model of politic that is based on a revised concept of human rights. First, the authors turn to the basic categories used in the analysis of political theories: national state, sovereignty, refugees, stateless people, and human rights. Then, the authors examine the context of the emerging liberal conception of human rights and the critics of this conception. After presenting the main arguments against the liberal conception of human rights, the authors turn to the theory of sovereign power. One of the main conclusions of this theory is that emancipatory political theorists should refuse the concept of human rights. Agamben’s argumentation of such a refusal is based on the statement about the inevitable connection between human rights and state power. The authors point out both the positive and negative aspects of Agamben’s approach as well as showing its advantages and limitations. Next, the authors demonstrate an alternative approach to human rights as proposed by J. Ranciere. At the end of the article, the authors present a constructive model of emancipatory politics which incorporates the ideas of G. Agamben, J. Ranciere, and J. Butler. For the authors of this paper, this model is free of the main drawbacks of the approaches under consideration. The advantages of the model are an expansive view of power, and the reintroduction of the notion of solidarity into emancipatory theory.

Natural Population Decline and Syrian Refugees: An Analysis of Political Theories and Resettlement by Nation

Over the last decade, there has been a growing trend of European nations with fertility rates below replacement levels, top-heavy population age structures, and, in turn, widespread natural population decrease. Meanwhile, the turmoil taking place in Syria has led leaders of nations around the world to host fleeing refugees. Many in the media claim these two components are connected—that is, those nations losing population seek refugees to resolve their crises. This article empirically tests whether the natural population change in thirty-three European nations is a significant predictor of the number of refugees the nation resettles.

ТИПОЛОГИЗАЦИЯ РЕГИОНАЛЬНОГО ПОЛИТИЧЕСКОГО РЕЖИМА ИРКУТСКОЙ ОБЛАСТИ

The authors consider contemporary western and Russian classifications of regional political regimes and their applicability for Russia. Based on the analysis of political theories, the authors chose the traditional typology of regional political regimes focusing on the minimalist interpretation of democracy (electoral competition) and methods for identifying regional scenarios introduced by V.Ya. Gelman. The authors study the case of the Irkutsk Region as a region with conflicting elites, in which in a short period several regional heads were replaced. Based on the contemporary political history, the authors analyze the regional political regime using the following criteria: democracy/autocracy, consolidation/oligo-poly, compromise/conflict relations within the ruling elite. The results of the analysis prove the existence of checks and balances in the political system of the Irkutsk Region. Such a system restrains strong politicians attempts to monopolize the political power in the region. When any political player gains too much influence, other centers of power unite against him and together return the situation to the status quo. The political regime of the Irkutsk Region ensures a relatively high level of political competition, at the same time it is a part of the uncompetitive political regime of the Russian Federation, therefore it is a ‘hybrid democracy’. The authors’ analysis of intra-elite relations in the region revealed a high predisposition to conflicts with the dominant scenario of ‘war of all against all’.

"This is not a cyber war, it's a...?"

This paper is a political theory analysis using the conflict, attacks, and ‘hactivism’ surrounding the WikiLeaks organisations following diplomatic cable releases as a case study to demonstrate the complexity of contemporary cyber conflict. This complexity is reflected in the motivations, identities, and values of a multiplicity of (often non-state) actors. Termed ‘the first visible cyber war’ this conflict (having already drawn in states, media organisations, banks and payments companies, and loose coalitions of individuals) is one where traditional metaphors of war occlude as much as they reveal. International relations and critical security studies have developed a range of approaches to international conflict that focus on identities, values, and normative frameworks. Securitization, hegemony, and democratic demands offer a productive way of understanding cyber conflict. Distributed denial of service attacks are interpreted as an attempt to establish a dominant discursive position and to construct a coalition around political issues

Monarchy in the Hebrew Bible

This article continues the analysis of political theory in the Hebrew Bible. The books of Samuel and Kings recount the history of the monarchy in ancient Israel. This setup allows the author to conclude his analysis of confederacy and also to examine two other forms of government: theocracy and monarchy. The author argues that confederacy is too weak to provide reliable protections to the people. He endorses the ideal of theocratic rule but views theocracy as unsuitable for practical governance. He identifies weaknesses in monarchy but endorses it as the best form of government provided that the king is constrained by appropriate checks and balances. Contrary to the view of many biblical scholars, no text from Genesis to Second Kings fundamentally disapproves of monarchy as a form of government.

The Book of Judges: The Hebrew Bible’s Federalist Papers

This paper continues the analysis of political theory in the Hebrew Bible. This book of Judges evaluates the pros and cons of a confederacy of semi-sovereign tribes, constituted by legal obligations and embodied in three institutions: judges, military leaders, and a tribal assembly. Although the author portrays the leaders of the confederacy as heroes who rescue Israel from distress, his evaluation of the confederacy is negative. He argues that its institutions are not strong enough to reliably deliver the benefits of nationhood – justice, security, prosperity, domestic tranquility, and fidelity to God.

Nationhood and Law in the Hebrew Bible

This paper continues the analysis of political theory in the Hebrew Bible. The Book of Exodus identifies nationhood as the best form of political organization. Nationhood, in turn, requires self-government, centralized institutions, and control over territory. The narrative of Mount Sinai addresses the topic of centralized institutions. The author here distinguishes and insightfully analyzes four types of legal institution: the fundamental commitment, the rule of recognition, fundamental law, ordinary law, and rules pertaining to the organization of government.

The Dark Age: How the Biblical Narratives Demonstrate the Necessity for Law and Government

This paper continues the analysis of political theory in the Hebrew Bible. In earlier work I argue that the Garden of Eden story explores why people have an obligation to obey the law. The narratives that follow describe a “Dark Age” characterized by accelerating violence and ending in a catastrophic flood. These texts expand the analysis of the Eden narratives by asking whether human beings can achieve a good and decent life in the absence of government and law. The narratives describe an experiment in which people interact strategically in an environment where cooperation can generate a surplus but defection is always possible. The message of the Dark Age texts is people cannot achieve a good and decent life in the absence of government and law. The story of Noah’s Flood expands the analysis by arguing that human beings can achieve a good and decent life in the presence of government and law. The Tower of Babel story explains why, even with government and law in place, human societies do not achieve their full potential.

Iago the meritocrat: Conflicting interpretations of individualism in the early modern period

Shakespeare's Iago can be used as a vehicle for critically contemplating the changing values of the transitional period between medieval and modern England and Europe. In addition to other speculative explanations that traditionally have been offered, Iago's malevolence can be interpreted as a merit-based expression of the fundamental changes of a pre-liberal society that would, eventually, transition into the modern economic marketplace of today. According to that perspective, Iago is motivated not only by his anger for having been passed over for promotion but by his belief that he was denied a position that he demonstrably deserved. In contrast, it can be argued that the traditional interpretation of Shakespeare's preference for conservative principles of hierarchy and order (as found within the medieval remnants of Elizabethan England) is, thus, reflected in his assignment of that character to be a symbol of evil. Therefore, the play can be employed (consistent with a historicist approach) as an instrument of historical, socio-economic, and political-theory analysis by reflecting the tension that the emergence of the politically autonomous and sociologically meritocratic individualist posed to the modern world that was just emerging at that time and that soon would begin to dominate the modern liberal society as it has evolved from the 17th to the 21st centuries.