This paper argues in favor of characterizing Saparmurat Niyazov's rule as sultanistic. The paper does this on the claim that authoritarian regimes are defined in broad terms and hence there is a...Show moreThis paper argues in favor of characterizing Saparmurat Niyazov's rule as sultanistic. The paper does this on the claim that authoritarian regimes are defined in broad terms and hence there is a clear theoretical gap that needs to be filled with alternative theories that make detailed analysis of regimes possible. Therefore sultanism was selected as an under researched political theory, that has a strong relationship with Niyazov's rule. The thesis examines the definition of sultanism in contrast to authoritarian and totalitarian regimes in order to establish vital characteristics that make sultanism unique. It then applies these characteristics to the lack of ideological significance under Niyazov's regime, the manipulation and control of the political structure and the set up of a kleptocracy. The analysis of these establishes that Niyazov's rule is sultanistic.Show less
The research question of this master’s thesis is: 'to what extent does Žižek’s rethinking of ideology and ideology critique, as formulated in his The Sublime Object of Ideology, facilitate an...Show moreThe research question of this master’s thesis is: 'to what extent does Žižek’s rethinking of ideology and ideology critique, as formulated in his The Sublime Object of Ideology, facilitate an ideology critique of the liberal-capitalist society as it was envisaged by the Frankfurt School?' My thesis is that Žižek’s rethinking of ideology makes a new kind of ideology critique possible, one which is fundamentally different from the ideology critique of the Frankfurt School. It will be shown that Žižek differs from the Frankfurt school in that he excludes the possibility of freeing oneself fully from ideological delusions. However, Žižek’s ideology critique still provides a moment of resistance against ideology and hence a moment of freedom. This makes Žižek’s rethinking of ideology and ideology critique a critical theory of society, despite the differences with the Frankfurt School. An implication of this thesis seems to be that it establishes the urgency of thinking about a reaction to today’s ideology in order to establish a more just society.Show less
This BA thesis explores the nature of individual human agency in the second season of the television series The Wire. Drawing on Althusserian or Gramscian thought, involving the question of...Show moreThis BA thesis explores the nature of individual human agency in the second season of the television series The Wire. Drawing on Althusserian or Gramscian thought, involving the question of ideology and its limiting effects on human agency, I have argued that the nature of human agency in The Wire is problematic. The characters, especially in the second season, are bound by an ideological discourse. Chapter two has shown that the characters are involved in an ideological discourse of their own and that determines the extent of their individual agency. In addition, and in dialogue with the ideologies that bind the characters, there is the (creators of the) series’ own ideological response to this, both in terms of the plotting and on a more formal level (discussed in chapters three and four respectively).Show less
Where it seems that the ideological narrative a political party or entity takes forms the base for the support it gets, since 1978 and onwards the CCP has shown it is possible to change this...Show moreWhere it seems that the ideological narrative a political party or entity takes forms the base for the support it gets, since 1978 and onwards the CCP has shown it is possible to change this ideological narrative without losing legitimacy as a ruling power. This thesis covers the changing ideology of the CCP from 1949 up till now, and offers an explanation on how the Party has been able to legitimize its shift from being a socialist state up till the end of the 1970's, to currently being one of the most capitalist countries in in the world.Show less
This essay asks what the differences and similarities were between the Seikan debate and the debate surrounding the Taiwan Expedition. By comparing the motivations behind and rhetoric around these...Show moreThis essay asks what the differences and similarities were between the Seikan debate and the debate surrounding the Taiwan Expedition. By comparing the motivations behind and rhetoric around these two instances of aggressive foreign policy, this essay aims to shed a light on the degree of Western and traditional ideological influence and consequently show how Japan saw great changes in its ideological discourse during the early years of Meiji rule (1868–1877).Show less
Ludwig Von Mises is consensually seen as the father of modern libertarianism, but little is known about the deeper roots of his uncompromising laissez-faire way of thinking. This dissertation tries...Show moreLudwig Von Mises is consensually seen as the father of modern libertarianism, but little is known about the deeper roots of his uncompromising laissez-faire way of thinking. This dissertation tries to present a better understanding of the origins of Mises thought and, more particularly, how Mises, from a very technical economist before the First World War, turned into an ideologist in his book Nation, State, and Economy (1919). Through a careful description of the historical background an analysis of the evolution of his political thought from 1907 to 1919, it is argued that the three Mises’ main biographies, from Jörg Hülsmann, Murray Rothbard, and from Mises himself, interpreted his pre-war ideas in a teleological and anachronistic manner by applying posterior concepts that did not hold before the war. The main conclusion of this thesis is that Mises shifted from a technician to an ideologist as a reaction against the First World War and the excessive centralization of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. After suggesting that the psychological roots of this shift should be explored, it is also argued that Mises is, in the end, conceptually mimicking the socialists he criticizes, and that the second wave of the Austrian School starts not in the twenties, but in 1919 with Nation, State, and Economy.Show less
This paper looks at several voting power indices based upon the Banzhaf power index that take into account the ideology of voters. It then applies these indices to a voting body that is divided...Show moreThis paper looks at several voting power indices based upon the Banzhaf power index that take into account the ideology of voters. It then applies these indices to a voting body that is divided ideologically, the European Parliament. The modified power indices tend to reduce the voting power of party groups in extreme ideological positions, to the benefit of the median party group.Show less
