Writing an essay on philosophical topics requires tremendous patience and an integrated approach to it. This is the type of essay in which it is not enough to simply express your thoughts, it is desirable to back them up with reliable information and research of philosophers of the past. This process requires considerable time to get acquainted with historical works and literature. If you need such essay very urgently, we recommend you to order cheap custom research papers from professionals.

Ideological criticism definition

Before writing the ideological criticism essay example you should to understand where it has started. Since the beginning of the XIX century. Western theorists were increasingly aware of the political content of the term "ideology," which was increasingly used in political discussions and in the struggle of various social groups. But what is the ideological criticism?

"A person has no more painful care, how to find someone to transfer as soon as possible the gift of freedom with which this unfortunate creature is born."

These are the words of the Grand Inquisitor from the novel The Brothers Karamazov by F. M. Dostoevsky. Ironically, the image of the inquisitor and his ideas were introduced into the novel in order to refute them, but the 20th century served as a terrible confirmation of these truths.

How to do an ideological analysis

Charles-Marie Gustave Le Bon ( 7 May 1841 – 13 December 1931)

One of the first to talk about the beginning of the era of the crowd was the French psychologist Gustave Lebon. In his work of 1895, “The Psychology of Nations and the Masses”, the idea is clearly traced that the roots of the psychology and the ideology of the masses are in biological causes — the crowd is guided by bestial emotions. One more ingenious guess of Lebon - the crowd does not need democracy, the authoritarian management style is closer to it, it needs a leader. The same idea is found in the works of Freud, who was convinced that in the basements of the public psyche there lived an unbearable longing for the missing father, the leader of the pack  of ideological interpretation.

Ideological criticism essay example

The ideological analysis of Fascism, Nazism, Stalinism and other ideologies of this kind shows that they are the best proof of the statement above. But is the mechanism of the development of global collective phenomena, which always — both then and now — made up the fabric of social life so simple?

Erich Seligmann Fromm ( March 23, 1900 – March 18, 1980)

This question was answered perfectly by the sociologist, psychologist, philosopher and founder of neo freudians Erich Fromm, who tried to bring the problem beyond psychoanalysis and show that Nazism, however, like any other similar ideologies, is a complex phenomenon that simultaneously depends on psychological, and from socio-economic conditions:

Nazism is  mostly the psychological problem of society, You should pay attention while understanding such facts to that fact that only when taking into account their formation under the influence of socio-politics and the factors of economic influence. Nazism is also the  problem of the economics and politics, but without taking into account psychological factors, it is impossible to understand how it gained power over an entire society.

As a witness of the birth of Nazism in Germany, Erich gave in his book “Escape from Freedom” the most in-depth analysis of this phenomenon. Investigating the phenomenon of freedom, Fromm comes to the conclusion that the modern man who broke with the age-old machine of pre-individualistic society, which completely regulated his life (limited and protected), did not acquire any other freedom - the freedom to realize his personality, intellectual, emotional and sensual abilities. This contradiction caused a feeling of isolation, anxiety and powerlessness. According to Erich Fromm, it is the insignificance and impotence of the individual, caused by economic conditions and the main trends of political development - the soil that fed the roots of fascism. Psychologist notes:

“This statement contradicts the generally accepted opinion that modern democracy, freeing the individual from all external restrictions, has led to the flourishing of individualism... Have we achieved this goal? Or at least approaching it?”

It is in the state of such anxiety that a person is ready to find a new dependence for himself, to give his freedom to a strong dictator, having pleased the Grand Inquisitor.

“The Psychology of Nazism” from the book by Erich Fromm, in which the philosopher showed how the fear of being isolated, and the weakness of moral principles in social frustration and complimentary glorification of the people and race by the state become a solid basis for strengthening Nazism in Germany. Why do we need to read it now?

As Carl Gustav Jung noted in his interview about Nazi Germany:

“Any person who loses his shadow, any nation that believes in his infallibility, will become prey. We feel love for the criminal and show a burning interest in him, because the devil makes us forget about the beam in our own eye when we notice the mote in the brother's eye, and this is the way to lead us. The Germans will find themselves when they accept and admit their guilt, but others will fall prey to obsession if they forget about their imperfections in their aversion to German guilt. "

Conclusion

Ideology, of course, is influenced by social feelings, affects, passions. In social and political practice, the emotions and the will of social groups play a very important role.