{"title":"Obstacles and distortions: a speculative approach to ideology","authors":"G. Daly","doi":"10.1080/13569317.2021.1916203","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"ABSTRACT Building on Hegel’s speculative philosophy, this paper seeks to engage critically with Ernesto Laclau’s highly influential theory of ideology. Three central points of contention are developed. First, while Laclau’s view of ideological distortion as a distortion of a lack is well taken, the paper affirms that in order to sustain itself this distortion becomes a paradoxical two, or in Hegelian terms an oppositional unity. The distortive illusion of fullness (the concealment of basic lack) only becomes operational via a reciprocal supplementary distortive illusion of an external obstacle to that fullness – the illusion of fullness is thus sustained by its opposite. Second, in contrast to Laclau’s view of the extra-discursive as a distant imaginary, it is argued that the existing capitalist power structure functions effectively as its own extra-discursive in a far more immediate sense in the organization of reality. Third, the real problem of ideology is not simply that (extra-discursive) closure is absent and has to be imposed but rather that the very proximity of closure generates unbearable tensions and antagonisms that need to be externalized and re-staged in more manageable ways. Drawing on a range of examples, the paper aims to synthesize an alternative speculative approach to ideology.","PeriodicalId":47036,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Political Ideologies","volume":"28 1","pages":"83 - 101"},"PeriodicalIF":1.0000,"publicationDate":"2021-04-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/13569317.2021.1916203","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Journal of Political Ideologies","FirstCategoryId":"90","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1080/13569317.2021.1916203","RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q3","JCRName":"POLITICAL SCIENCE","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
ABSTRACT Building on Hegel’s speculative philosophy, this paper seeks to engage critically with Ernesto Laclau’s highly influential theory of ideology. Three central points of contention are developed. First, while Laclau’s view of ideological distortion as a distortion of a lack is well taken, the paper affirms that in order to sustain itself this distortion becomes a paradoxical two, or in Hegelian terms an oppositional unity. The distortive illusion of fullness (the concealment of basic lack) only becomes operational via a reciprocal supplementary distortive illusion of an external obstacle to that fullness – the illusion of fullness is thus sustained by its opposite. Second, in contrast to Laclau’s view of the extra-discursive as a distant imaginary, it is argued that the existing capitalist power structure functions effectively as its own extra-discursive in a far more immediate sense in the organization of reality. Third, the real problem of ideology is not simply that (extra-discursive) closure is absent and has to be imposed but rather that the very proximity of closure generates unbearable tensions and antagonisms that need to be externalized and re-staged in more manageable ways. Drawing on a range of examples, the paper aims to synthesize an alternative speculative approach to ideology.
期刊介绍:
The Journal of Political Ideologies is dedicated to the analysis of political ideology both in its theoretical and conceptual aspects, and with reference to the nature and roles of concrete ideological manifestations and practices. The journal serves as a major discipline-developing vehicle for an innovative, growing and vital field in political studies, exploring new methodologies and illuminating the complexity and richness of ideological structures and solutions that form, and are formed by, political thinking and political imagination. Concurrently, the journal supports a broad research agenda aimed at building inter-disciplinary bridges with relevant areas and invigorating cross-disciplinary debate.