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Ideology is a belief system which is a product of cultural conditioning, and which presents itself as a ,natural' way of seeing the world. By posing as natural ways of seeing the world, bad or repressive ideologies may prevent us from understanding the material and historical conditions
- According to Marxism, bad ideologies promote repressive political agendas and, in order to
ensure their acceptance among the citizenry, they pass themselves off as „natural ways? of seeing the world. For instance, an argument such as „it is natural for men to hold leadership positions because of their biological superiority' is a sexist ideology. Another example: 'Every man who would like to have a house on his own land' is a capitalist ideology which poses as 'natural'. Some examples of repressive ideologies include religion, patriotism, peace, gender, ethnicity and culture. Let us take the example of Christianity as a religion. It teaches us to forget earthly riches for the glory of heaven which we shall enjoy after death. Do you see how the rich can use such an idea to dispossess the poor and keep them eternally poor? Let us take the example of 'patriotism'.
Patriotism teaches us to love our country and defend it with our blood. But how many of the rich would want to do that? From a Marxist perspective, patriotism is intended to protect the rich by the blood of the poor. Let us take culture, which pretends to be a „natural? way of life. Culture has rules of obedience, and clearly defines the roles to be played by men and women. Some of the African cultures are patriarchal, meaning they promote men at the suffering of women. Culture thus becomes a repressive tool to enhance oppression of women.At this point one may pose to ask, is religion an ideology or an ideal? When the bible teaches us that human life is sacred, is this ideology? For Marxism, when an ideal functions to mask its own failure, it is a false ideal, or „false consciousness?, whose real purpose is to promote the interests of those in power. The question for a Marxist would be, „How does the biblical teaching enlist the support of the poor majority in promoting the interests of those in power?
- Marxism considers itself a non-repressive ideology, by acknowledging that it is an ideology. It also works to make us aware of the ways in which we are products of material/historical circumstances and of the repressive ideologies that serve to blind us. For instance, it serves to enlighten us not to believe the repressive ideology that if some people are poor, it is because they are lazy.
- Marxism considers itself a non-repressive ideology, by acknowledging that it is an ideology. It also works to make us aware of the ways in which we are products of material/historical circumstances and of the repressive ideologies that serve to blind us. For instance, it serves to enlighten us not to believe the repressive ideology that if some people are poor, it is because they are lazy.
- Marx believed that the proletariat will one day develop the class consciousness needed to rise up in violent revolution against their oppressors and create a classless society. This way, they would be able to alter the current power structure to their benefit.
NatalieR answered the question on June 13, 2022 at 12:39