Ideological Myths Research Articles

Four Fundamental Myths of Postmodern Thought: (Or, The Eclipse of the Gaze)

JLn the following I address four basic epistemological assumptions that underlie and define postmodern thought. While these assumptions are accepted, consciously or not, by postmodern thought as a priori and unchallengeable truths, I argue that they actually are historically established ideological myths that increasingly premise both mainstream and academic discourses, with specific analytical and political consequences. By postmodern thought I don't mean any specific trend of thought within the epistemologically and culturally multicolored mosaic of postmodernity, the latter being understood as the era of global capitalism. Rather, I mean any thought that defines itself by precisely the four epistemological principles in question. The first premise of postmodern thought, examined in the first section of the present essay, is the obliteration of the universal as a legitimate epistemological category. This premise concerns not only the postmodern intolerance toward claims to universal representation or universal truth, but also the notorious death of big theories/7 The second premise, an intrinsic corollary to and predecessor of the first, is the notorious death of God, which becomes the object of the second section. The next section deals with the third premise of postmodern thought, that things in themselves are without meaning or value. The last section addresses the fourth premise, according to which although nothing discursive is supposed to be without meaning or value relativism is treated, knowingly or not, as precisely meaningor value-free. Finally, as the subtitle implies, all four premises of postmodern thought are different manifestations of denying one and the same epistemological function: the gaze.

The Meaning of Myth in Ulysses and The Magic Mountain

In her article Meaning of Myth in Ulysses and The Magic Mountain Susan V. Scaff discusses the proposition that Joyce and Mann combine in their novels myth and history and contradicts Joseph Frank's influential early view that modernist writers avoid history in favor of myth and the more recent verdict of Hayden White that this evasion amounts to an abrogation of civic responsibility mirroring fascism. Mann and Joyce recoil from the horrors of history while exploring the recovery of myth as amelioration. They realize that myths may lose their life bearing quality, and they portray a disoriented Europe lacking the creative power to reestablish connection with its grounding traditions. If humanity cared enough for its welfare, it would recall the regenerative myths of its heritage, yet the protagonists falter. While Hans Castorp, Stephen Dedalus, and Leopold Bloom are cast as heroes in ancient myths of return, in the present day no character completes his story. Just as disturbing, partisans like Joyce's Mr. Deasy and the citizen and Mann's Naphta and Settembrini defend dangerous ideological myths. The novels balance these risks of unfulfillment and hostility with a theme of healing love represented most powerfully by Bloom: love creates attachments to family, home, and mythical heritage, the only hope for humanizing our lives and history. Susan V. Scaff, Meaning of Myth in Ulysses and The Magic Mountain page 2 of 10 CLCWeb: Comparative Literature and Culture 11.2 (2009):

The ideological myth of education: a critical reflection

When reflecting critically on issues of education in society it is necessary to consider the following question: in what scientific paradigm should educational theory and practice be located in order to address issues of education in society in an educationally responsible manner? In this essay, I argue that for education theory and practice to address issues of education in an educationally responsible manner, it is necessary that educational theory and practice be located in the tradition of the human sciences. The human sciences have their origin in values that have to do with the human condition. This being the case, education theory and practice should not be sacrificed in the service of educational policies that are driven by an ideological intent be it political, cultural, social or economic. In the event of such a categorical misplacement of intent, I would argue that the resultant politicisation and en-culturalisation of education gives rise to the ideological myth of education that in turn leads to the demise of the responsible role of education in society. What is needed to make education theory and practice a responsible force in society is the return of education theory and practice to the tradition of the human sciences.

Enlightenment and nuclear order

Applying the method of enlightenment correctly to the area of nuclear non-proliferation would require a major effort to critically evaluate ideologies. Liberal arms control—despite its many successes and merits—has devised over the years a whole set of ideological tenets and attitudes. Some of them have been transformed into beliefs that could be termed myths. The most prominent ideological myth of the liberal arms control school is the notion that the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty of 1968 (NPT) was in essence a disarmament agreement, not a non-proliferation treaty. To depict the negotiations as a premeditated effort of enlightenment, where the governments of this world came together to solemnly decide that some of them would be allowed to have some nuclear weapons for an interim period while the others would renounce their possession immediately, is pure. It would be equally wrong to qualify the ‘grand bargain’ as one between the nuclear haves and the nuclear have-nots. Another myth of the liberal arms control school is the notion that—in order to gain support for the NPT—the superpowers had altered their nuclear weapons strategy in the 1960s. Again, this contention is not borne out by the development of nuclear strategies and doctrines. The third myth is the contention that there was an abrupt shift in US non-proliferation policy as George W. Bush came into power. The major changes in US non-proliferation policy had already started during the Clinton administration and some of them can be traced back to the tenure of President George W. H. Bush senior. They all reflected the changed international environment and represented necessary adjustments of the non-proliferation strategy. The Clinton administration left some of the traditional paths of arms control and rightly undertook some changes that were necessary because traditional instruments of arms control were no longer adequate. The Bush administration continued that policy, but in a more radical way.

Women and the state: Käthe Truhel and the idea of a social bureaucracy

Käthe Truhel’s 1934 doctoral dissertation, prepared under the supervision of Karl Mannheim, repays detailed examination for a number of reasons. First, it serves as an important counter-example to commonplace generalities about the alleged incapacity of women social workers of Truhel’s generation, supposedly enmeshed in ideological myths about ‘motherliness’, to reflect on their power relations to a male-dominated society and state. Second, it offers an intrinsically interesting and subtle analysis of the emerging bargaining structure for negotiations between bureaucrats and social workers in the context of late Weimar, understood as a site of the crisis of modernity. Third, it illustrates the quality and range of empirical work fostered by Mannheim during his brief tenure in Frankfurt.

'The Only Place Where ''Success'' Comes before ''Work'' Is in the Dictionary...?'

'The Only Place Where ''Success'' Comes before ''Work'' Is in the Dictionary...?'

Myths and Moral Authority in Maluku: The Case of Ambon

Since January 1999, the island of Ambon, located in the province of Maluku (Moluccas) in Eastern Indonesia, has been the scene of a virtual war between Christians and Muslims. Amid its religious underpinnings, two competing nationalistic ideologies have developed, one based on allegiance to an ethnic Moluccan nation and the other to a civic nation of common residence. Attempts to rationalise the underlying sentiment of the masses in these movements have purported rational explanations of the pursuit of common material interests, while others have focused on innate emotions of individual loyalty to their community. The other explanation suggests that identity is constructed as an ideological myth that convinces the individual of the simplicity of otherwise complex situations. In this respect, this paper has focused on the psychological and political appeal of myths of kinship as strengthening ideas of national consciousness and individual loyalty. It is asserted that the construction of new 'us' and 'them' visions of imagined community occur in the context of social, economic and political processes. These disruptive forces place individuals in stress situations and make them susceptible to these ideologies which offer simplistic diagnoses of complex social and political changes.

A Future Foretold: Neo-Aristotelian Praise of Postmodern Legal Theory

Postmodern thinking puts severe stress on the project of legal theory. The philosophical critique of grand narratives, coupled with the radically pragmatic return to localized practices, has rendered theorizing suspect. Theory appears to be a quaint vestige of previous bad faith refusals to accept the finitude of human existence. But the postmodern position is even more complex, because postmodern anti-theorists tend to employ perplexing jargon and wield sophisticated and obscure concepts in their work. The postmodern puzzle is whether one can challenge theory without theorizing. Is theory defined by its practical effects, or by its refusal to become complicit in everyday practices? Is the urge to theorize a product of modernist ideology that leads us astray, or our openness to enlightenment? Although postmodern thinking has made these questions particularly pressing, they are timeless. Therefore, it should not be surprising that contemporary readings of Aristotle can provide a helpful guide for uncovering the possibilities of postmodern legal theory. I address the postmodern puzzle regarding the nature of theory and its relationship to practice by drawing from the contemporary appropriations of Aristotle's practical philosophy by Martin Heidegger, Hans-Georg Gadamer and Joseph Dunne. My goal is to outline the role that critical legal theorists can play in light of the neo-Aristotelian account of theory that emerges from this discussion. Although this account reinforces the postmodern critique by revealing that the image of the sovereign theorist who stands as expert commentator to the side of legal and social practices is an ideological myth, this does not mean that theory is irrelevant. Once theory is reconceived as a disposition within practice, its unavoidable significance becomes clear. The practical demand for judgments, combined with the normative injunction to do justice, makes law a particularly important venue for investigating the entwinement of theory and practice. I conclude by suggesting that critical legal scholarship by Bill Eskridge and Kathryn Abrams provide examples of this dynamic of theory and practice.

The Myth of the Macho Scotsman: Attitudes to Gender, Work and the Family in the UK, Ireland and Europe

It is a common assumption in everyday conversation that attitudes towards gender are more conservative in Scotland than in other parts of Britain, and that this is particularly true of Scottish men. We expect the inhabitants of Govan to take a more traditional approach to gender roles than those of Islington. This assumption perhaps has two origins. Many of the ideological myths which are central to Scottish national identity are based around rigid and conservative gender hierarchies. Highland clans, tarlanry and kailyard are full of images of men and women occupying quite distinct social positions. Some of the more modern myths which have been contrasted to these, such as the myth of Red Clydeside, are based around gender hierarchies which are no less stark. For example Red Clydeside still evokes images of men involved in industrial struggle: the Clyde Workers Committee, Gallacher or Mac Lean. The role of women in the munitions factories of the first world war, or their leadership of the struggle over housing and fair rents, is given less attention (Melling 1983). As McCrone (1992, p.97) has noted, it is significant that the central ideological figure of nineteenth century Scots egalitarianism 'the lad o' pains' was exactly that; there were no 'lasses o' pains'.

Arts and Crafts as an Ideological Myth

Arts and Crafts as an Ideological Myth

Review Essay: Arts and Crafts as an Ideological Myth

Review Essay: Arts and Crafts as an Ideological Myth

Aborigines and ideological myths

Aborigines and ideological myths