1.

In the world of politics, an ideology consists of a primary belief that specific groups of people decide to be a part of. In the US these ideologies are categorized into three groups, rightists, centrists, and leftists. All of these groups have different beliefs that define who they are as individual groups. Rightists tend to have conservative beliefs while leftists have liberal beliefs. On the other hand a centrist have a moderate political views meaning that might be open to both ideologies to a certain capacity.

One example that illustrates my thoughts on ideology is that conservatives or rightists focus a lot on having harsher policies when it comes to laws. For example, rightists are pro-life meaning that an abortion would not be allowed after a specific amount of time has passed while a woman is carrying life. However, leftists are pro-choice and support those who are pregnant, to have the option of having an abortion if they choose to do so.

An Ideology is nothing but the simple concept of having a belief system in place that may or may not divide people into different groups due to their perception of an idea. These beliefs make society what it is. It sets a culture and a standard towards what laws are in place. Additionally, without ideologies there would be no political system in place at all.

2.

In the united states there are major key differences regarding ideologies between the conservative party and the liberal party. Conservatives are a much more serious group due to the fact that they rely specifically on their moral beliefs in regards to principles individuals must live up to. Liberals however, are less concerned with the values of conservatives and focus on the economy of the country. They are also more democratic while the conservatives are on the republican side.

3.

Althusser’s definition of an ideology couldn’t be more spot on. He believes that an ideology is the representation of individuals and their condition or way of living. Althusser also said that an ideology will always exist as an apparatus, meaning that an ideology isn’t just a concept but rather a structure in itself that would be eternal. Ideologies are the life and blood of a society as it deeply embedded in how laws and social standards come into place.

describe how you understand ideology in your own words

Based on the video, I interpreted that political ideology basically are different sets of beliefs in politics that explains what rules society should follow or how they should be. To further explain ideology are basically groups of people who agree on a certain belief. For example, socialism ideology focuses more on a society that creates wealth. 

How do you understand the difference between conservative and liberal ideology in US politics? What seem to be the big differences, the dividing line? Given an example to backup your arguments.

There are a lot of major differences between liberalism and conservative ideology in politics. Conservatives believe that a large government puts individual liberties in danger. Liberals believe in individual rights and that the government should protect their individuals. While conservatives have values that conserve traditional and social practices, liberals values believe in equality and defends an individual’s freedom and liberty. 

I understand Althusser’s definition of ideology as how the government/society creates values or beliefs that we tend to subconsciously follow and believe.

Keeping in mind the material covered in this lesson, describe how you understand ideology

Ideology is a concept of ideas.It’s a gathering of thoughts to help form a particular view or opinion on a particular topic. This also opens the floor for other people, who share similar or even different ideological concepts as you. Now this is where ideology gets interesting to me because ideology can also have multiple meanings depending the term you’re using it in.

How do you understand the difference between conservative and liberal ideology in US politics? What seem to be the big differences, the dividing line? Give an example to back up your arguments.

An example of that would be the debate between liberal and conservative ideology.Liberals today tend to think that government should intervene in the economy and provide a diverse spectrum of social services to ensure equality and well-being for all members of society, though the concept of liberalism has evolved through time.Such as freedom of speech, press, religion etc..Whereas conservatives frequently hold the view that government should be limited and primarily focused at the state or local level. They want very little government involvement in the economy.That would mean they would want the government too impose limitations on abortion and same-sex marriage in order to protect ‘traditional morality’.Or another way of describing it is how it was said in the article, “ Conservative ideology preaches the virtues of private initiative and self-reliance: rich and poor pretty much get what they deserve; people are poor not because of inadequate wages and lack of economic opportunity but because they are lazy, profligate, or incapable. The conservative keystone to individual rights is the enjoyment of property rights, especially the right to make a profit off other people’s labor and enjoy the privileged conditions of a favored class”(Institutions and Ideologies 52).I mean if doesn’t show how small minded and ignorant conservatives are I don’t know what does? They definitely love to blame other people for economical social problems as if 1.they aren’t part of the issue or 2.are making the situation more worse. Whereas most modern liberals think that in order to maintain low unemployment, low inflation, and rapid growth, the consistent basis must be managed by the government. They basically love the government’s ‘help’ on stopping the inequalities in the world.To be honest, I feel like liberals are easily gaslighted by the government, in the sense where I can say “I will cancel all student debt if you vote for me” and a liberal would say “ Hey! I have student debt so I’m definitely going to vote for that guy!” and months later…. guess who still has student debt? Yeahh…see my point?

How do you understand Althusser’s definition of ideology? Paraphrase it in your own words. Given an example

Ideology, according to Althusser, is a perception of power. When their conditions worsened, it would make sense that individuals, as stated in the video, turned to fascism. You kind of need to have a smart mind if you want others to obey you or listen to you. You need to know what to say, when to say it, what concepts you believe, and so forth. Relating all of this to ideology, if you hold a broad belief or viewpoint and persuade others to hold the same viewpoint you do, then that would be the sense of power he refers to.An example of this would be the repressive approach which consults in fear, such as police, courts, incarceration.

3.1

A)Ideology is the your own idea. In other words it can be a personal idea/opinion in an individual, group, or culture. This means that it is your own opinion and that you have your own belief on something. Instead of listening to social media, politics, and having a bias opinion you are open minded an have your own thoughts. Being able to do so you have to be more open minded and have a listen in every perspective.

B) For example you have famous people like celebrities, artist, and actors. With fame also comes love and hate. Not everyone is going to support you living life. So with fame also comes social media so on social media you have people that spread rumors and say certain things that seem believable. With this as rumors start more and more people start to say it and you have viewers like myself or other people that use social media just listen and believe everything that comes off of it. People start not like a famous people because of a rumor so instead of even knowing what really happened or even having any information on the topic you just believe what everyone else says.

C)I understand ideology by listening to the term don’t believe everything you see on tv. This helps me because it shows not to believe everything you see. In my personal life I have seen the closest friends break up because of stuff that was said around the block and instead of discussing it they drifted apart and let it get to their head. So in my opinion I feel that being open minded and not being bias to one opinion and listening to others or even the person itself helps you understand situations way better.

2) Ideology differs from conservatives and liberal in many ways. Both conservatives and liberal have different beliefs and views of society, government, and the progress of the nation. Conservative is know as a right-leaning movement while liberal is known as a left-learning movement. The dividing line between them is conservative believes in free market. Traditional and religious value, and strong national defense. While liberal beloved in progress, civil liberal, and equal opportunities and equality.

3)Althusser’s ideology was basically argued that the power by using both repressive state apparatus and ideological stays apparatus spreads conventional ideology and ensure that the proletariat is in a state of false class consciousness.

3.2

1)Repressive State Apparatus is a timely intervention within politics interest of ruling class by either repressing the social classes or either using violent or nonviolent coercive means .
Althusser called it repressive because of the courts, fines, prisons, army and the police , however it was to analyze the way law operates most of times .

2)Ideological State Apparatus is methods other than physical violence to achieve the same objectives as RSA ( Repressive State Apparatus ) . It also ensures that the proletariat is in a state of false class consciousness . They work by getting guided by groups and memberships to the social order accepting and following rules set by them . It generally shapes a person identity and give them purpose of self to society .

3)Although they both function by repression and ideology and are know and the state power and state apparatus , the Repressive State Apparatus function as a unified entity and violence , while Ideological State Apparatus is a diverse in nation , ideology and plural function .

Question 1

Ideology describes one’s view of the world, usually politically, but also religiously, morally, ethically, etc. Concurrently, it describes one’s beliefs on how to deal with the problems of the world, or how not to deal with them. It is informed by many factors, but the most common are parental influence, generation, the political climate of one’s upbringing, identity (sexual, racial, etc), and education. Ideologies are man-made.

An example of a common ideology is Conservatism. In America, conservatives operate on the belief that Government is a threat to individual liberty and must be as small and limited as possible. This core belief drives all of their other beliefs on policy, as well as how they interact with and view others in the world.

Question 2

Conservatives and liberals make up the bulk of the population in the United States. While they are essentially two sides of the same coin (capitalists), their differences come down to their beliefs on equality and uses/ideal size of the government. Conservatives favor a small, localized government handled by individual states. This stems from a belief that a big government poses a threat to individual liberty. In their view, the US government has taken on too much since the New Deal, and needs to be significantly rolled back. They believe that free market capitalism is fair and ideal, that the government should completely avoid handouts to impoverished communities, and that social programs need to be reduced or cut completely. In general, they favor traditional moral values, especially applied to issues such as gay marriage, abortion, etc.

For liberals, the most important and deciding issue is equality. Their policies grew out of the New Deal. They favor a large government and lots of government intervention, especially in the forms of higher taxes, regulation of large corporations, environmental regulation and protection, and cuts towards the defense budget. They are especially dedicated to the assistance of marginalized groups, which stems from their strive for equality. In general, they do not trust the fairness of the free market. Their social beliefs take the progressive route. As examples, they are pro-gay marriage, pro-choice, and fervent proponents of racial equality.

Question 3:

In Althusser’s view, ideology is our subconscious belief about how we must function in society. This of course comes with a subconscious belief of how society should function. Specifically, that society must function capitalistically, and any questioning or rebellion against capitalism should result in violence (although not always literal physical violence. ex: incarceration). Althusser believed that these ideas are ingrained even before birth, giving the example of children taking their father’s last names. Another example of this definition of ideology is the belief that we must constantly be working in order to be “good” people. In my personal experience, every time I have a gap in employment or in school I eventually end up feeling lazy, useless, and ashamed.

1. In my opinion, ideology is a group of ideas and beliefs that are shared by a group of people. To elaborate, an individual can be part of democracy, for example, therefore, they will listen to the collection of ideas about democracy. I see the term ideology as a belief system where different people have a say on what they believe. Also, I consider ideology to be a concept where I think people exercise the highest power over the country. I understand ideology as one’s ideas and beliefs. For example, I can believe in the term democracy, therefore, I will continue searching for and exercising the utmost authority over government policies and governance.

2. As I read the reading, I came across some terms such as conservative, liberal, and other many terms. In this particular space, I will discuss what is the difference between the two ideologies conservative and liberal. As one should know, conservative ideology is when the individual has the freedom and contains human dignity. To elaborate, conservative ideology preaches the virtues of private initiative and self-reliance. The reading gave an example that “rich and poor pretty much get what they deserve; people are poor not because of inadequate wages and lack of economic opportunity but because they are lazy, profligate, or incapable.”(pg 52). This is an example of how conservative ideology can be defined. Liberal ideology carries protecting and improving the freedom of the individual to be the problem of politics. Liberal ideology is constructed on the liberty and equality of all human beings. I understand the differences between conservative and liberal ideologies by having the idea behind my head that conservative is the left-wing and liberal ideology is right-wing. Liberalism supports a democratic form of government, while conservative ideology supports a capitalist form of government.

3. I understand Althusser’s definition of ideology which he believes that ideology has little to do with awareness, it is deeply insensible. Althusser believed that ideology is spread by agents such as the media and helps to create society’s identities. 

1. I would describe ideology as a belief system or system of ideas installed into individuals. An example of this would be a football organization having its players represent themselves a certain way when being interviewed by the media. This organization is creating a mindset for its players on how they should behave and act. Further more ideologies are installed all around us. At work their is one form of ideology, with a group of friends there may be another and at your parents house a different kind. All these environments have the ability to create ideas in which dictate how one should act in such settings.

2. The difference I see between Liberal and Conservative ideology in America is that Liberals are more for big government and Conservatives are against big government. Liberal’s support ideas like universal healthcare, assisted living for the unfortunate and larger taxes on the ultra wealthy. Conservatives support less taxes on the ultra wealthy arguing that if they were taxed less they could provide better pay and opportunities for the working class. They support big spending on the military and less spending on the helpless. Liberals want the governments help but don’t want the government to be a police state over them. As for conservatives they feel the government should stay out of most situations and be the up most authoritative to the average citizen.

3. Althusser’s definition of ideology is that if you distract the members of a society with the “choices” of freedom then they will feel free. Which keeps them content enough to conform to the system that the people in charge want integrated. If this doesn’t work and people do try to disregarded the system then you threaten or punish them with violence. The whole idea is to give people a sense of freedom so they do not think about inequality or fight for change. For example giving the people the right to vote for president in America. In all actuality the odds of either candidate making substantial changes is slim but the powers that be want the people to feel like they have a choice so they don’t try to rewrite the whole system.

1. Keeping in mind the material covered in this lesson, describe how you understand ideology in YOUR OWN WORDS. 

An ideology is a collection of beliefs and opinions of an individual person or group of people which has an effect on how people view the world they live in. Ideology is used to define the common interests and goals of a particular political party, as well as philosophies regarding cultural groups or religious backgrounds. Most people support several ideologies. For example, someone who affiliates with a certain religion and identifies with a political party follows at least two ideologies.  

Political parties come with an assortment of ideals that range from government and economics to healthcare and constitutional rights. The two major parties of the United States are often said to have major ideological differences. Someone’s chosen political belief dictates how they feel about the role of government in society. For example, the political ideology of an anarchist would be a society without a class system, monarchy, or political group, but instead relies on the people to govern themselves. Ideologies of fascism would be the need for a powerful state to achieve social and economic success, with the help of an authoritarian or totalitarian leader. Fascists often believe in racial supremacy like the ruthless and fascist dictator Adolf Hitler.  

There is also an assortment of cultural and social ideologies that usually have an impact on their actions as well as the political party they side with. For instance, a social ideology that I would relate to personally is feminism. As an ideology, feminism promotes equality for all women in multiple fields such as economic equality, social equality, and political equality. It additionally focuses on the rights of women, including their reproductive rights. The contrasting ideology is referred to as a patriarchal ideology. This is where men are the predominant leaders within a society and hold all power. This power includes the development of laws and practices that must be followed by all citizens. All religions can be considered ideologies and consists of various beliefs. Some people who subscribe to a religion are devout and use the principles of their belief system to help them make important life choices, such as selecting what political party to align with.  

Frequently ideologies are spread by institutions like the church, the government, the media, the law, and sometimes even the school system. These are ideologies that exist in our everyday lives and are things we very rarely question because they are thought of as the norm. This discourages people from fighting back against these policies and in turn keeps society stable. Some examples of ideologies that occur in our day to day lives are beliefs about gender roles, stereotypes about people of a certain race and sexual orientation, and the notion of classism.  

2. How do you understand the difference between conservative and liberal ideology in US politics? What seems to be the big differences, the dividing line? Given an example to back up your arguments. 
 

The ideologies of liberals and conservatives are known to be fundamentally different. However, having two healthy political parties existing together is part of the necessary framework of the United States. Conservatives and liberals have similar goals when it comes to wealth, however, the two parties have opposite ways of achieving them. Conservatives and liberals bump heads on subjects such as the size of the government and how big a role it should play in the average citizen’s life. One party calls for big government that helps their people, while the other prefers that government take a much smaller position in their lives. Understandably, liberals vote for issues that conservatives will oppose, as well as the other way around. In general, it is easy to recognize what party someone affiliates with according to their social status, ethnicity, education, and household upbringing, however, locating them this way is not always accurate. Each group holds their own viewpoints and is a major part of contemporary political thoughts and beliefs in the United States.  

As mentioned before, conservatives believe that a sizable government is a danger to the citizens individual liberty. They wish to have the smallest government involvement possible in their daily lives. Although they agree that the government should aid in our national defense and believe that the spending should not be cut for the military. Nevertheless, ever since President Franklin Roosevelt proposed the New Deal the conservatives think that government has played far too big a role in the lives of the people, and they do everything they can to remedy this. According to conservatives, decisions should be made within each individual state. Organizations that provide disposable income should be controlled by the private sector, the part of the economy that is not under government control. By doing this the conservatives believe they will decrease the amount of money they country is spending. This reduction in spending, according to conservative ideals, will equate to lower taxes. The conservative party believes in the free market. A free market is a system in which all economic decisions and activities concerning money are voluntary and therefore it cannot be corrupted. Conservatives propose that this will provide benefits for many people as well as immense economic opportunity.  

Conservatives dislike flag burning and encourage incorporating faith into our education system because it provides people with their traditional ideological views. Due their religious background conservatives tend to be heavily against abortion, however there are occasions when they stray away from their party’s social believes. This is not the case when it comes to economic views.  

Liberals believe that equality is the most important virtue of their party and government is there to help them promote that virtue. Unlike conservative ideology, liberals rely heavily on the government to resolve any problems that may arise. They particularly appreciate the government getting involved in the form of higher taxes, and when they implement programs to assist marginalized groups such as people of color, women, and the underprivileged. Liberals are equally appreciative when the government helps the environment. This is because, contrasting to the ideological views of conservatives, liberals do not trust the free market and do not believe their decisions will be fair for all people. The liberals are aware that many of their proposals are extremely expensive, so they are in favor of high taxes on the rich as well as large money grabbing corporations. Liberals are not entirely anti-business, but they would rather see them regulated by the government, so the money is evenly distributed. Another major liberal ideology is that they believe that the country spends far too much money on the military. The money should be cut and given to programs that desperately need it. Additionally, liberals are primarily anti-gun and are sometimes labeled as New Deal Liberals because many policies they advocate for come out of President FDR’s New Deal.  

3. How do you understand Althusser’s definition of ideology? Paraphrase it in your own words. Given an example. 

French philosopher Louis Althusser states that people are starting to become obedient to authority figures like politicians, police officers, and even schoolteachers. By complying with these people in charge the population it makes our ideology stronger. People do not do what they want when they want to because they are fearful of the consequences. Althusser proceeds to proclaim that schools are the most powerful state apparatus because it is mandatory for students all over the world. Schools have now taken the place of churches during the medieval feudal system. In school you learn how to read, write, and complete a math problem, but you are similarly taught how to be disciplined by those who outrank you. You follow a precise schedule, take the same classes every day, but you are also taught to surrender to the demands of your teacher, never speak out of turn, keep a tidy desk, and only speak when called on by your teacher. We follow these rules because of the looming threat of violence or punishment. Teachers are part of the ideological system; however, Althusser does not believe they are at fault because they are simply following the rules of the people they answer to, making it never ending cycle of fear-based compliance. 

1.) “Ideology” is a word that may seem quite easy for many of us to say. But what about it’s meaning? This is where things may start to become rather complicated because it is typically used for a subject that stems for controversial debate, in other words politics. From my understanding, I believe that ideology in politics or political ideology is defined as a “multitude of ideas,” or characteristics and concepts that are thought of from society. Most of these “ideas” that are made is in connection to how the government handles various issues that are often spoken about. Now, considering that people have different viewpoints on how the government handles things, people often become divided. For example, there are two groups of people; “Liberals” and “Conservatives.” In short, liberals are individuals who believe that the government can aid in solving many problems. While the conservatives are the complete opposite, they want less of the government’s help and involvement. Let’s think of the topic of taxes, everyone who works legally must pay it. Liberals want a progressive tax system so that there will be higher taxes on the wealthy and corporations. They see this as a means of collecting enough money so that there is funding for various issues like the environment, poor/homeless people, and etc… On the other hand, the conservatives wants the government to lower it because they will then have more money to themselves. Being that taxes is one of the many topics for debate when it comes to the government, it is not the only thing that creates a division in perspective between these two groups.

For me, the concept of ideology on the whole was something that I was able to define on my own because I was able to comprehend the difference between liberals and conservatives. Despite the fact that they are groups that have different perspectives, they share the common goal of discussing the government. The government has the “highest power” in a way, they are able to invoke change over the entire country and oversee that it’s people are aware of the rules and regulations. Individuals of society obviously do not have as much power but can voice their ideas and concerns in hopes that changes that the government makes are one’s they agree with. Everyone has different perspectives, thus, most of the ideas that are generated from various issues differ greatly. Being able to think of their ideas made me realize what ideology in politics is all about.

2.) When you think of the two different groups; the liberals and conservatives, you come to understand that they have quite difference in opinion based on each other’s ideology. For starters, there are the liberals who are individuals that believe that the government can solve problems, an even bigger one is better. They also support government intervention when it comes to regulations and taxes because it will benefit minorities, women, and the poor. Not to mention, they want to see that the environment gets the necessary care that it needs and that spending be cut for national defenses. All in all, they are people that prefer to have social problems be taken care of. On the other hand, there are the conservatives that want the total opposite. They prefer the national government to be as small as possible because they feel it is a threat to “individual liberty.” They also believe in “free market” and think the government should continue funding the national defense but have lower spending because it will aid in having less taxes. Considering that we know a bit about each side’s perspective, I think the biggest difference between the two is that they don’t agree on how much the government should be involved in people’s personal lives. For instance, according to the video “Political Ideology: Crash Course Government and Politics #35,” it states (timestamp: 2:35-2:40), “The social sphere is where we differ significantly from our libertarian friends who don’t see any role for government in people’s personal lives. This means that libertarians often support things like marijuana legalization that more traditional conservatives do not support.” This quote from the video is a prime example as to how their perspectives differ greatly when it comes to the government’s involvement in people’s live. Conservatives aim to want their personal liberty, by having the government more involved or a bigger one, it restricts people from being their own man. They see it as a threat to their freedom and less of a protector. Individual liberty is the biggest difference between both sides and following this would be taxes.

3.) When Althusser created his definition of ideology, I believe what he was trying say is that we create beliefs that we accept and stand by without consciously knowing that you believe. The reality that we are in allows us to reinforce those beliefs so we are in between the lines of having what is in our minds versus what is in reality so that we make good agents of society. For example, the way you dress makes you think that you can be defined a certain way in reality. In the video “Althusser on Capitalist Ideology and State Apparatuses,” (Timestamp: 6:50-6:55) states, “Sure, you can define yourself as a Soc or a Greaser by wearing different clothes and maybe get some community out of it but again, nothing much will change.” This quote from the text is a prime example of how what we think or our “ideology” corresponds to the reality that we live in. By wearing a different set of clothes, you think that you will be able to change your identity in a way but you are still the same person; just living in a fake reality. Althusser’s perspective of ideology was very different but had a point!

Keeping in mind the material covered in this lesson, describe how you understand ideology in YOUR OWN WORDS.
Hint: One way to approach this is as follows
a) Describe what ideology is in a brief paragraph (in your own words).
b) Give an example illustrating what you wrote in (a).
c) Write another paragraph (or two), explaining to your reader with additional details, how you understand ideology.

1- According to me ideology is a set of rules and beliefs of a group of people. It is a some ideas that a group or individual is based on. It forms the operating principles for a society. These people believe in these ideas without even questioning why they exist. An example is the Democracy Ideology, which consist in, the government of a country has to be elected by the masses. In order words in the government is elected by popular vote, it has the mandate and consent to lead under its policies until another election. Most country in the world shared the ideology of democratic regime for governance.

Ideology is a group of principles of certain political, social and cultural beliefs of parties. Most people subscribe to multiple ideologies. For example a person who follow a particular religion and a political party such as Catholicism and Republicans, has straight beliefs tie to these two ideologies. As a catholic this person will believe that the main motive for ethical behavior is to love God. They believe in the trinity and virgin Mary. A person affiliated to Republican ideology would support traditional values, no abortion and no gay marriage.

2- How do you understand the difference between conservative and liberal ideology in US politics? What seem to be the big differences, the dividing line? Given an example to backup your arguments.
Hint: try to identify key words (concepts) that play a big role in making someone consider themselves to be liberal or conservative. Then, explain in your own words what those keywords (concepts) mean

2- I understand the conservatives and liberals are used to describe political affiliations in the US society. In addition, democrats are often viewed as liberals and republicans are often viewed as conservatives. Conservatives are partisans of free market, Liberty, capitalism, big business defense. In other words, conservatives think that most service should be provided by the private sector in a free market, there must be less regulation. Also big business or higher income entities should have incentive instead of been taxed to invest more. However, liberals believe in equality, social groups, controlled economy, self interest. They think that the government should provide the services such as free universal health care to all citizens to challenge private health care companies, on top of that high income earners should pay a good part of their income as taxes.

3. How do you understand Althusser’s definition of ideology? Paraphrase it in your own words. Given an example. Hint: you may have to watch the second video again, and find the few places where Althusser’s position is presented.

3- Per the video, Althusser’s definition of Ideology is that Ideology is a system and structure imposed by the ruling group such as government, schools, judiciary institution to control a society in their own interest. They use sometimes violent and non violent method to do so. It causes people to believe that they have control over their lives while in fact, they don’t. According to Althusser’s, people do not act in their own interest but they they are not even conscious of it. People tend to believe being normal means to be part of a group, and/or share same beliefs with a group without been conscious it is not the best choice because none of them are in our interest. People are distracted by entertainments, social media to not been conscious of their situation and not doing anything to change it. An example is that school is labeled as a place to learn how to read, write and also a necessity. But school is similarly a tool to teach people to be disciplined and obey. People think they are free, when actually their freedom is controlled and restricted by force.