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Ideological Fixation: From the Stone Age to Today's Culture Wars
Combining insights from evolutionary psychology with a broad sweep through history, down to the ideological civil war ripping the United States apart, the book explores the deeper roots of people's inability to accept claims about reality which come from the opposite ideological camp, no matter how valid they might be.
After theorists around 1960 proclaimed the 'death of ideology', ideological divides and clashes have reemerged with renewed intensity throughout the world. In the United States they have become particularly venomous. Each side in America's escalating ideological civil war charges the other with concocting 'fake news' and 'alternative facts'. The other side is widely viewed as malicious, irrational or downright stupid, and, often, as barely legitimate. People are deaf to claims about reality that come from the opposite camp, no matter how valid they might be. The zeal of the opposing sides is often scarcely less than that which characterized the religious ideologies of old. Indeed, historical religious ideologies have largely been replaced by 'secular religions' or 'religion substitutes'.
Ideology consists of normative prescriptions regarding how society should be shaped, together with an interpretive roadmap indicating how this normative vision can be implemented in reality. Ideological Fixation is the result of tensions and conflicts between these two elements. The book focuses on ideologies' factual claims about the world, typically subordinate to, and often distorted by, their normative commitment. In exploring this phenomenon, the book combines insights from evolutionary psychology regarding the nature of some of our deepest proclivities with a broad sweep through history and around the world. It proceeds from the Stone Age to the rise of civilization, the great religions and modernity, to a critique of fundamental factual premises that underlie some of the major debates dominating today's liberal democracies, not least the United States.
After theorists around 1960 proclaimed the 'death of ideology', ideological divides and clashes have reemerged with renewed intensity throughout the world. In the United States they have become particularly venomous. Each side in America's escalating ideological civil war charges the other with concocting 'fake news' and 'alternative facts'. The other side is widely viewed as malicious, irrational or downright stupid, and, often, as barely legitimate. People are deaf to claims about reality that come from the opposite camp, no matter how valid they might be. The zeal of the opposing sides is often scarcely less than that which characterized the religious ideologies of old. Indeed, historical religious ideologies have largely been replaced by 'secular religions' or 'religion substitutes'.
Ideology consists of normative prescriptions regarding how society should be shaped, together with an interpretive roadmap indicating how this normative vision can be implemented in reality. Ideological Fixation is the result of tensions and conflicts between these two elements. The book focuses on ideologies' factual claims about the world, typically subordinate to, and often distorted by, their normative commitment. In exploring this phenomenon, the book combines insights from evolutionary psychology regarding the nature of some of our deepest proclivities with a broad sweep through history and around the world. It proceeds from the Stone Age to the rise of civilization, the great religions and modernity, to a critique of fundamental factual premises that underlie some of the major debates dominating today's liberal democracies, not least the United States.
351 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 4, 2022
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
December 7, 2023
Science is such a good thing. Steven Pinker's book "Rationality" gave us the cognitive framework to detect fallacies and cognitive biases that people usually employ in their everyday lives. Hans Rosling's book "Factfulness" gave us data to show us that we are not at the verge of the end of the world. Now, this one, is a true masterpiece when it comes to explain many themes, such as philosophy, economics, history and finally, ideologies.
(I've seen profiles of super, and highly-intelligent beings that have read every marxist thinker and that everything is capitalist-m, hating this kind of books; they are SO obvious, and they are easy to spot, too bad they read too much to encapsulate all of their knowledge into one way. Turns ou the ones that pursuit justice and truth through the lens of critical social justice, are more ideologically fixated than those that are the ones that "oppress" the others) .
The book explains the "fixations" that people hold as a "truth" or "universal truth" despite being blurry or not prove. Thus, "ideological fixations" is what actually is ruling people's minds nowadays. The only way to be reasonable, is to stick to the scientific method (even though progressives say that "is a western construct", which is plain stupidity), stick to the facts and while it may be impossible for us human beings, be objective. There are lots of stupid things that are a trend nowadays, and words such as "alternative facts" or "woke" people. There's a reason for all of this: fallacies, and biases that are part of the human way of thinking. Our cognition is not perfect, we are animals with million-years worth of evolutionary baggage. Jordan Peterson stated that "thinking is a difficult endeavour", and it is, of course it is. That's the only thing that explain flat-earthers, even thought there's a zillion tons of evidence. Fixation is a terrible thing, whether if it is left or right-wing. That's the beauty of this book, it challenges you to meditate, and try to comprehend not just why people have an affiliation, but to stick to the fact that there are vestiges of truth in every part of the spectrum (both political or moral matrix).
Please, try to get this book and read it, read it because it is a necessity.
(I've seen profiles of super, and highly-intelligent beings that have read every marxist thinker and that everything is capitalist-m, hating this kind of books; they are SO obvious, and they are easy to spot, too bad they read too much to encapsulate all of their knowledge into one way. Turns ou the ones that pursuit justice and truth through the lens of critical social justice, are more ideologically fixated than those that are the ones that "oppress" the others) .
The book explains the "fixations" that people hold as a "truth" or "universal truth" despite being blurry or not prove. Thus, "ideological fixations" is what actually is ruling people's minds nowadays. The only way to be reasonable, is to stick to the scientific method (even though progressives say that "is a western construct", which is plain stupidity), stick to the facts and while it may be impossible for us human beings, be objective. There are lots of stupid things that are a trend nowadays, and words such as "alternative facts" or "woke" people. There's a reason for all of this: fallacies, and biases that are part of the human way of thinking. Our cognition is not perfect, we are animals with million-years worth of evolutionary baggage. Jordan Peterson stated that "thinking is a difficult endeavour", and it is, of course it is. That's the only thing that explain flat-earthers, even thought there's a zillion tons of evidence. Fixation is a terrible thing, whether if it is left or right-wing. That's the beauty of this book, it challenges you to meditate, and try to comprehend not just why people have an affiliation, but to stick to the fact that there are vestiges of truth in every part of the spectrum (both political or moral matrix).
Please, try to get this book and read it, read it because it is a necessity.
January 3, 2023
بالنسبة لليونانيين ، كان الخير يتألف من السعادة والرفاهية وازدهار الروح (eudaimonia) ، التي اعتبروها هدفًا في الحياة. كان الهدف من البحث الأخلاقي ، الذي يسترشد بالعقل ، تحديد السلوك الصحيح ، الفضيلة (aretê) ، للإنسان لتحقيق الحياة الجيدة. اعتبر أفلاطون وأرسطو والفلاسفة اليونانيون المعاصرون لهم من جميع المدارس أن التصرف الجيد تجاه الآخرين ، كونهم "جيدون" ، يخدم ولا ينفصل عن تحقيق المصلحة الذاتية. لقد جادلوا بأن التحليل الدقيق للعقل يظهر أن إيذاء الآخرين من شأنه أن يرتد في النهاية ويسبب ضررًا للشخص نفسه. تشترك التقاليد الرئيسية الأخرى في الحضارات المتقدمة في أوراسيا في وجهة نظر متشابهة إلى حد ما فيما يتعلق بالتقارب الأساسي بين المصالح الفردية والجماعية كما يعترف بها الحكماء. مع وجود أساس خارق للطبيعة أكبر أو أقل ، ينطبق هذا ، على سبيل المثال ، على المفهوم الهندوسي والبوذي للدارما ، والذي يشبه إلى حد ما الشعارات اليونانية وكذلك العقيدة الكونفوشيوسية عن الحياة المتناغمة في مجتمع متناغم.
ومع ذلك ، كانت المسيحية ، بتراثها اليهودي غير الطبيعي ، والمتمحور حول الله ، وعباءة المفاهيم الأفلاطونية والأرسطية الجديدة عن الله ، هي التي سيطرت على التقليد الغربي من العصور القديمة المتأخرة حتى (على الأقل) الفترة الحديثة المبكرة . لم يشارك أتباعها ، وأتباع الديانات التوحيدية الأخرى ، تمامًا الرأي المريح القائل بأن الأخلاق في حد ذاتها دفعت الأفراد إلى التصرف بشكل جيد تجاه الآخرين - حتى لا يسببوا لهم أي ضرر ويمدوا لهم بعض يد المساعدة. لم يكونوا متأكدين تمامًا من محاذاة المصالح الفردية والجماعية في التحليل النهائي ، بحيث لا يكون من المفيد للفرد السعي وراء مصالحه الأنانية على حساب الجماعة وإحداث الضرر.
"لماذا تنجح طرق الأشرار؟" سأل نبي الكتاب المقدس إرميا (12: 1). كما لم يكن أتباع الديانات التوحيدية واثقين مثل الإغريق والبوذيين والكونفوشيوسيين من أن "التساهل" المفرط " في الملذات الحسية كان ضارًا في جوهره بالنفس. باختصار ، لم يثقوا تمامًا في الأخلاق للوقوف على قدميها بنجاح. كانت هناك تصورات مختلفة ، بالطبع ، ولكن الآن كان دور الله إلى حد كبير ، وتعويضه الإلهي - في هذا العالم أو العالم الآخر - هو ردع الناس عن فعل "الشر".
.
Azar Gat
Ideological Fixation
Translated By #Maher_Razouk
ومع ذلك ، كانت المسيحية ، بتراثها اليهودي غير الطبيعي ، والمتمحور حول الله ، وعباءة المفاهيم الأفلاطونية والأرسطية الجديدة عن الله ، هي التي سيطرت على التقليد الغربي من العصور القديمة المتأخرة حتى (على الأقل) الفترة الحديثة المبكرة . لم يشارك أتباعها ، وأتباع الديانات التوحيدية الأخرى ، تمامًا الرأي المريح القائل بأن الأخلاق في حد ذاتها دفعت الأفراد إلى التصرف بشكل جيد تجاه الآخرين - حتى لا يسببوا لهم أي ضرر ويمدوا لهم بعض يد المساعدة. لم يكونوا متأكدين تمامًا من محاذاة المصالح الفردية والجماعية في التحليل النهائي ، بحيث لا يكون من المفيد للفرد السعي وراء مصالحه الأنانية على حساب الجماعة وإحداث الضرر.
"لماذا تنجح طرق الأشرار؟" سأل نبي الكتاب المقدس إرميا (12: 1). كما لم يكن أتباع الديانات التوحيدية واثقين مثل الإغريق والبوذيين والكونفوشيوسيين من أن "التساهل" المفرط " في الملذات الحسية كان ضارًا في جوهره بالنفس. باختصار ، لم يثقوا تمامًا في الأخلاق للوقوف على قدميها بنجاح. كانت هناك تصورات مختلفة ، بالطبع ، ولكن الآن كان دور الله إلى حد كبير ، وتعويضه الإلهي - في هذا العالم أو العالم الآخر - هو ردع الناس عن فعل "الشر".
.
Azar Gat
Ideological Fixation
Translated By #Maher_Razouk
September 23, 2025
Science is such a good thing. Steven Pinker's book "Rationality" gave us the cognitive framework to detect fallacies and cognitive biases that people usually employ in their everyday lives. Hans Rosling's book "Factfulness" gave us data to show us that we are not at the verge of the end of the world. Now, this one, is a true masterpiece when it comes to explain many themes, such as philosophy, economics, history and finally, ideologies.
(I've seen profiles of super, and highly-intelligent beings that have read every marxist thinker and that everything is capitalist-m, hating this kind of books; they are SO obvious, and they are easy to spot, too bad they read too much to encapsulate all of their knowledge into one way. Turns ou the ones that pursuit justice and truth through the lens of critical social justice, are more ideologically fixated than those that are the ones that "oppress" the others) .
The book explains the "fixations" that people hold as a "truth" or "universal truth" despite being blurry or not prove. Thus, "ideological fixations" is what actually is ruling people's minds nowadays. The only way to be reasonable, is to stick to the scientific method (even though progressives say that "is a western construct", which is plain stupidity), stick to the facts and while it may be impossible for us human beings, be objective. There are lots of stupid things that are a trend nowadays, and words such as "alternative facts" or "woke" people. There's a reason for all of this: fallacies, and biases that are part of the human way of thinking. Our cognition is not perfect, we are animals with million-years worth of evolutionary baggage. Jordan Peterson stated that "thinking is a difficult endeavour", and it is, of course it is. That's the only thing that explain flat-earthers, even thought there's a zillion tons of evidence. Fixation is a terrible thing, whether if it is left or right-wing. That's the beauty of this book, it challenges you to meditate, and try to comprehend not just why people have an affiliation, but to stick to the fact that there are vestiges of truth in every part of the spectrum (both political or moral matrix).
Please, try to get this book and read it, read it because it is a necessity.
(I've seen profiles of super, and highly-intelligent beings that have read every marxist thinker and that everything is capitalist-m, hating this kind of books; they are SO obvious, and they are easy to spot, too bad they read too much to encapsulate all of their knowledge into one way. Turns ou the ones that pursuit justice and truth through the lens of critical social justice, are more ideologically fixated than those that are the ones that "oppress" the others) .
The book explains the "fixations" that people hold as a "truth" or "universal truth" despite being blurry or not prove. Thus, "ideological fixations" is what actually is ruling people's minds nowadays. The only way to be reasonable, is to stick to the scientific method (even though progressives say that "is a western construct", which is plain stupidity), stick to the facts and while it may be impossible for us human beings, be objective. There are lots of stupid things that are a trend nowadays, and words such as "alternative facts" or "woke" people. There's a reason for all of this: fallacies, and biases that are part of the human way of thinking. Our cognition is not perfect, we are animals with million-years worth of evolutionary baggage. Jordan Peterson stated that "thinking is a difficult endeavour", and it is, of course it is. That's the only thing that explain flat-earthers, even thought there's a zillion tons of evidence. Fixation is a terrible thing, whether if it is left or right-wing. That's the beauty of this book, it challenges you to meditate, and try to comprehend not just why people have an affiliation, but to stick to the fact that there are vestiges of truth in every part of the spectrum (both political or moral matrix).
Please, try to get this book and read it, read it because it is a necessity.
February 12, 2023
Este libro ofrece una fascinante exploración de la psicología y la historia de las ideologías, incluida la religión. El autor examina las principales ideologías que han competido en la arena sociopolítica desde el siglo XIX: el liberalismo, el socialismo y el fascismo. Y examina algunas de las diversas corrientes de pensamiento normativo que han surgido de ellas, como el capitalismo, el comunismo, el marxismo y el feminismo. Además, el libro destaca la importancia de estas creencias seculares para sus seguidores: la gente tiene ideas seculares que, como la religión, les dan propósito y esperanza para resolver los problemas del mundo, y cuestionarlas se considera una blasfemia. Además, al igual que la religión, a menudo no se toleran otras creencias y se tiende a creer que los demás tienen malas intenciones. Las ideologías seculares modernas prácticamente activan los circuitos psicológicos que la religión ya ha activado, por lo que mucha gente se refiere a ellas como «religiones seculares».
En cuanto a cómo se entiende una ideología y lo que el autor denomina «fijación ideológica»:
Y una de las frases que más me gustó:
En general, se trata de una obra excelente para quienes estén interesados en profundizar en el análisis de las ideologías y su impacto en la sociedad, la historia y nuestra psicología.
En cuanto a cómo se entiende una ideología y lo que el autor denomina «fijación ideológica»:
La ideología consiste en prescripciones normativas apreciadas en cuanto a lo que es justo y cómo debe configurarse en consecuencia la realidad social, junto con una hoja de ruta interpretativa que indica cómo pueden aplicarse estas prescripciones normativas en el mundo real. La fijación ideológica es el resultado de las tensiones y conflictos siempre presentes entre nuestros deseos normativos y la interpretación de la realidad. [Traducción personal]
Y una de las frases que más me gustó:
las convicciones normativas siempre han tenido que sopesarse y ajustarse a las realidades del mundo, o ser aplastadas por la experiencia, ya que la ideología es muy resistente, y a menudo impermeable, a la evidencia. [Traducción personal]
En general, se trata de una obra excelente para quienes estén interesados en profundizar en el análisis de las ideologías y su impacto en la sociedad, la historia y nuestra psicología.
September 1, 2023
There is nothing in this about "ideological fixation" beyond a few words in the preface. The first section reads like a Very Short Introduction on truth (and not a bad one at that), the second section likewise but on morality, then Azar Gat goes on to give little primers on atheism and liberalism, then some summaries of current culture wars... All of this leads to a conclusion that doesn't arrive. No one reading at this level (an Azar Gat book from Oxford) needs such an undergraduate approach.
October 7, 2023
Thought provoking.
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