Ideology,Tuesday October 19

In “A Critical and Cultural Theory Reader” edited by Antony Easthope and Kate McGowan, Ideology is said to consist of “ideas in service of class interests, and that ideology is a gigantic masquerade”(34). In relation “Hegemony specifies ideology as ways a ruling group, blow or class must rule by winning consent in conjunction with the threat of force, the effectiveness f hegemony depending on how rarely force, always present, actually has to be used”(35). The reading brought to mind the structure of classes and how ideology is created through the upper classes representations, which are created simply to keep them in the upper class. In order to do this, one must place the notion in all levels of class that the order put forth is one to benefit them all, for the greater good of everyone. In order to do this “each new class which puts itself in the place of one ruling before it is compelled, merely in order to carry through its aim, to present its interest as the common interest of all the members of society, that is, expressed in ideal form” it hast o give its ideas the form of universality, and present them as the only, rational, universally valid ones”(40). This statement allows me to see the unjust in this process, To take advantage through whatever means, over a group of people, very negative effects can occur. The danger in one group having control over another is that it starts an unjust system, which benefits singularly not universally. War is one that comes to mind, a higher power providing an outlook as to why people of a nation should place destruction on another, the constant circulation of this information psychologically alters the perceptions and desires of a group which thus acts out in a way and holds particular beliefs to do things that are harmful to all societies of people.