Theories of Ideology

Ideology definition- 'science of new idea's'

Ideology has been defined in a large variety of ways

• As a set of political beliefs, eg socialism, liberalism
• As the ideas and beliefs of a particular social class
• As the dominant ideas and beliefs of a ruling class
• As the official beliefs if a political system, e.g in totaliterian (dictorial) regimes like Hitler's Germany. 
• As a set of beliefs that represent a total view of reality, e.g religious fundamentalism. 

Your Social and Political perspective influences how you define IDEOLOGY

Marxists- See ideology as the set of ruling ideas that keep workers in their place. 

Feminists- See ideology as both the set of ideas that keep women oppressed (patriachal ideology) and a potentially liberating set of beliefs. (feminism)

Liberals (pluralists)- Tend to see ideology as totalitarian and oppressive- eg Stalin's Russia and Hitler's Germany both had offical ideologies which were repressive…