Ideological criticism
Encyclopedia
Ideological criticism is a form of rhetorical criticism
concerned with critiquing rhetorical artifacts for the dominant ideology they express while silencing opposing or contrary ideologies. According to Sonja Foss, “the primary goal of the ideological critic is to discover and make visible the dominant ideology or ideologies embedded in an artifact and the ideologies that are being muted in it”. Foss has also mentioned the contribution to ideological criticism of several theoretical schools, including Marxism
, Structuralism
, Cultural Studies
and Postmodernism
.
” and “freedom”) to help identify the ideological position of a society
. He argues such terms are used in discourse
as a means of justifying problematic issues within a society. The meaning of an ideograph is defined by a society and its culture
and can change over time. Ideographs need not be only positive in nature, but can be negative as well. For example, tyranny
and slavery
, can “guide behavior and belief negatively by branding unacceptable behavior". McGee notes that to fully understand ideographs, they must be examined both “diachronically
” as well as “synchronically
”. That is, ideographs need to be examined across time to determine how their meanings may have changed and all ideographs that are used in a given situation must be considered.
Who in democracy
would be opposed to actions taken under the auspices of liberty and freedom? To do so would, ideographically speaking, be undemocratic. Citizens of a democratic state are “conditioned” to believe that liberty and freedom are so fundamentally important that society expects those citizens to simply unquestioningly accept actions claiming to be in defense of liberty and freedom. For example, even within the United States, the ideograph of freedom has changed. At the time of the American War of Independence
(1775–1783), freedom meant breaking away from the tyrannical rule of the Kingdom of Great Britain
. Today, freedom probably means waging economic and military war across the globe to counter forces of totalitarianism, be they dictatorships or rogue regimes.
Ideographs need not be verbal
only; they can be visual
too. In 1997, Janis Edwards and Carol Winkler expanded the idea of the ideograph to include visual images as well as written words. They argue images can act as “a Visual reference point that forms the basis of arguments about a variety of themes and subjects” that are used by both “elite
s and non-elites” alike. Like McGee’s textual ideographs, visual ideographs depict common values and goals in a given culture, recur in different contexts over time, and are used to validate arguments and social practice
s. Edwards and Winkler mention images of people can act as ideographs too. “In their construct, a person (character) is abstracted and elevated to the status of a cultural figure, and becomes a surface for the articulation of the political character, employing cultural ideals”. Foss identifies the following steps in a piece of ideological criticism: 1) “formulate a research question
and select an artifact
”; 2) “select a unit of analysis
” (which she calls “traces of ideology in an artifact”); 3) “analyze the artifact” (which, according to Foss, involves identifying the ideology in the artifact, analyzing the interests the ideology serves, and uncovering the strategies used in the artifact to promote the ideology); and 4) “write the critical essay”.
Journals and magazines
|authors=Edwards, Janis L.; Carol K. Winkler |year=1997 |title=Representative Form and the Visual Ideograph: Two Iwo Jima Image in Editorial Cartoons |location= |publisher=Quarterly Journal of Speech |volume=Volume: 83 |url=http://www.comm.umd.edu/faculty/tpg/documents/EdwardsWinkleronIwoJima.pdf |format=PDF }}
Rhetorical criticism
Rhetorical criticism is an approach to criticism that is at least as old as Plato. In the Phaedrus, Plato has Socrates examine a speech by Lysias to determine whether or not it is praiseworthy...
concerned with critiquing rhetorical artifacts for the dominant ideology they express while silencing opposing or contrary ideologies. According to Sonja Foss, “the primary goal of the ideological critic is to discover and make visible the dominant ideology or ideologies embedded in an artifact and the ideologies that are being muted in it”. Foss has also mentioned the contribution to ideological criticism of several theoretical schools, including Marxism
Marxism
Marxism is an economic and sociopolitical worldview and method of socioeconomic inquiry that centers upon a materialist interpretation of history, a dialectical view of social change, and an analysis and critique of the development of capitalism. Marxism was pioneered in the early to mid 19th...
, Structuralism
Structuralism
Structuralism originated in the structural linguistics of Ferdinand de Saussure and the subsequent Prague and Moscow schools of linguistics. Just as structural linguistics was facing serious challenges from the likes of Noam Chomsky and thus fading in importance in linguistics, structuralism...
, Cultural Studies
Cultural studies
Cultural studies is an academic field grounded in critical theory and literary criticism. It generally concerns the political nature of contemporary culture, as well as its historical foundations, conflicts, and defining traits. It is, to this extent, largely distinguished from cultural...
and Postmodernism
Postmodernism
Postmodernism is a philosophical movement evolved in reaction to modernism, the tendency in contemporary culture to accept only objective truth and to be inherently suspicious towards a global cultural narrative or meta-narrative. Postmodernist thought is an intentional departure from the...
.
Ideograph
The unit of analysis in ideological criticism, or what Foss calls "traces of ideology in an artifact", is the ideograph. It is a symbol representing an ideological concept and is more than what the symbol itself depicts. Michael McGee, a renowned ideological critic, postulated that an “ideograph is an ordinary term found in political discourse” that “is a high-order abstraction representing collective commitment to a particular but equivocal and ill-defined normative goal”. Thus, McGee restricted ideographs to words, words that “constitute a vocabulary of public motives, which authorize and warrant public actions”. It is “presumed that human beings will react predictably and autonomically” to the use of ideographs. McGee encourages the study of ideographs (such as “libertyLiberty
Liberty is a moral and political principle, or Right, that identifies the condition in which human beings are able to govern themselves, to behave according to their own free will, and take responsibility for their actions...
” and “freedom”) to help identify the ideological position of a society
Society
A society, or a human society, is a group of people related to each other through persistent relations, or a large social grouping sharing the same geographical or virtual territory, subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations...
. He argues such terms are used in discourse
Discourse
Discourse generally refers to "written or spoken communication". The following are three more specific definitions:...
as a means of justifying problematic issues within a society. The meaning of an ideograph is defined by a society and its culture
Culture
Culture is a term that has many different inter-related meanings. For example, in 1952, Alfred Kroeber and Clyde Kluckhohn compiled a list of 164 definitions of "culture" in Culture: A Critical Review of Concepts and Definitions...
and can change over time. Ideographs need not be only positive in nature, but can be negative as well. For example, tyranny
Tyrant
A tyrant was originally one who illegally seized and controlled a governmental power in a polis. Tyrants were a group of individuals who took over many Greek poleis during the uprising of the middle classes in the sixth and seventh centuries BC, ousting the aristocratic governments.Plato and...
and slavery
Slavery
Slavery is a system under which people are treated as property to be bought and sold, and are forced to work. Slaves can be held against their will from the time of their capture, purchase or birth, and deprived of the right to leave, to refuse to work, or to demand compensation...
, can “guide behavior and belief negatively by branding unacceptable behavior". McGee notes that to fully understand ideographs, they must be examined both “diachronically
Historical linguistics
Historical linguistics is the study of language change. It has five main concerns:* to describe and account for observed changes in particular languages...
” as well as “synchronically
Synchronic analysis
In linguistics, a synchronic analysis is one that views linguistic phenomena only at one point in time, usually the present, though a synchronic analysis of a historical language form is also possible. This may be distinguished from diachronics, which regards a phenomenon in terms of developments...
”. That is, ideographs need to be examined across time to determine how their meanings may have changed and all ideographs that are used in a given situation must be considered.
Who in democracy
Democracy
Democracy is generally defined as a form of government in which all adult citizens have an equal say in the decisions that affect their lives. Ideally, this includes equal participation in the proposal, development and passage of legislation into law...
would be opposed to actions taken under the auspices of liberty and freedom? To do so would, ideographically speaking, be undemocratic. Citizens of a democratic state are “conditioned” to believe that liberty and freedom are so fundamentally important that society expects those citizens to simply unquestioningly accept actions claiming to be in defense of liberty and freedom. For example, even within the United States, the ideograph of freedom has changed. At the time of the American War of Independence
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
(1775–1783), freedom meant breaking away from the tyrannical rule of the Kingdom of Great Britain
Kingdom of Great Britain
The former Kingdom of Great Britain, sometimes described as the 'United Kingdom of Great Britain', That the Two Kingdoms of Scotland and England, shall upon the 1st May next ensuing the date hereof, and forever after, be United into One Kingdom by the Name of GREAT BRITAIN. was a sovereign...
. Today, freedom probably means waging economic and military war across the globe to counter forces of totalitarianism, be they dictatorships or rogue regimes.
Ideographs need not be verbal
Linguistics
Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. Linguistics can be broadly broken into three categories or subfields of study: language form, language meaning, and language in context....
only; they can be visual
Visual communication
Visual communication as the name suggests is communication through visual aid and is described as the conveyance of ideas and information in forms that can be read or looked upon...
too. In 1997, Janis Edwards and Carol Winkler expanded the idea of the ideograph to include visual images as well as written words. They argue images can act as “a Visual reference point that forms the basis of arguments about a variety of themes and subjects” that are used by both “elite
Elite
Elite refers to an exceptional or privileged group that wields considerable power within its sphere of influence...
s and non-elites” alike. Like McGee’s textual ideographs, visual ideographs depict common values and goals in a given culture, recur in different contexts over time, and are used to validate arguments and social practice
Social practice theory
Social Practice theory is a framework for social science researchers to describe how individuals in different societies around the world shape and are shaped by the cultural atmosphere in which they live...
s. Edwards and Winkler mention images of people can act as ideographs too. “In their construct, a person (character) is abstracted and elevated to the status of a cultural figure, and becomes a surface for the articulation of the political character, employing cultural ideals”. Foss identifies the following steps in a piece of ideological criticism: 1) “formulate a research question
Research question
A research question is the methodological point of departure of scholarly research in both the natural sciences and humanities. The research will answer any question posed...
and select an artifact
Social artifact
Social artifact is any product of individuals or groups or of their social behavior.Artifacts are the objects or products designed and used by people to meet re-occurring needs or to solve problems....
”; 2) “select a unit of analysis
Unit of analysis
The unit of analysis is the major entity that is being analyzed in the study. It is the 'what' or 'whom' that is being studied. In social science research, typical units of analysis include individuals , groups, social organizations and social artifacts.The literature of International Relations...
” (which she calls “traces of ideology in an artifact”); 3) “analyze the artifact” (which, according to Foss, involves identifying the ideology in the artifact, analyzing the interests the ideology serves, and uncovering the strategies used in the artifact to promote the ideology); and 4) “write the critical essay”.
Sources
BooksJournals and magazines
|authors=Edwards, Janis L.; Carol K. Winkler |year=1997 |title=Representative Form and the Visual Ideograph: Two Iwo Jima Image in Editorial Cartoons |location= |publisher=Quarterly Journal of Speech |volume=Volume: 83 |url=http://www.comm.umd.edu/faculty/tpg/documents/EdwardsWinkleronIwoJima.pdf |format=PDF }}