Reading Foucault, I came across a notion
regarding ideology and repression as "universal skeleton-keys"
(commonly used jargon that describes specifics in meaning regardless of
the nature of the dialectic) which maintain as entities subject for
intellectual reproach; surrounded in negativity. That is to say, one's
Ideologies or Ideological foundations are looked at as antitheses of
"truth" in science, philosophy, etc. Similarly, repressed phenomena
within an individual's psychological makeup are very seldom seen as
things of a positive nature; rather, they are the very things that may
be working incognito to bring about the downfall of the individual.
However, it seems to me that if one were to view Ideology and Repression in the same light, under the same lens of analysis, it is more a natural progression to conclude that perhaps, one is simply the mask for the other. Whereas Ideology seems to be an overriding "view of one-in-the-world" from that one's perspective, taking into account all past experiences, learned and instinctive; it seems also to be, in perhaps more respects that I can deduce presently, a disguise, or a mask for the very things one represses (based on those world-views and nurtured belief systems). Freud's psychoanalytical approach to psychology sought to unearth, as it were--to excavate those repressed memories, fears, desires, etc...
It is interesting to consider, even if the notion ultimately fails to stand on its own, the idea that perhaps, the things human beings repress are essential to the characterizations and evolution of what, in their internal/external world-views, become Ideologies as such. That is to say, what one presumes to know as truth based on a preconceived ideological notion, may merely be the inversion, and/or negative-repression presented in "belief form." Foucault is regarding the two concepts in relation to their effect on power, and knowledge, and the force the two as symbiotic entities have over individuals and the societies they subsequently belong to. If it is the case then, it is no wonder that, as stated in Foucault’s Truth in Power, “Repression is a concept used above all in relation to sexuality;” it is indeed no wonder that notions of civil rights for people of different sexual orientations are such a problem that still divides the Western world.
In this light, one’s ideology is revealing itself through the very fears being repressed. Conservatives and religious people hide behind their ideologies so they never actually have to make an informed decision on civil rights for individuals who differ from them; their ideology becomes the disguise—the mask—of the very thing being repressed. When I say “disguised,” that isn’t to say that one is casted away in some metaphysical dimension separated in some spatial/temporal dimension, or “hidden from view,” but rather a blockade of sorts--an obstruction that hinders progression in regards to whatever contingent set of problems that society is attempting to resolve or explain.
Beyond sexuality though, it seems as though this notion pervades many problems that societal structures shake and rattle as a result from. Under what circumstance does one usually come to face the fears that have so restricted one’s growth, in virtue, in moral goodness? Usually those things that bring under heavy scrutiny their ideological foundations; those root beliefs that fix—weigh on the shoulders from birth—the individual maintains through repressed fears because of the “comforts” the ideology brings in allowing one to essentially avoid the very things that cause those fears, or those weaknesses in character that prevent such growth. The seeker of truth, the philosopher, the writer, the explorer of the arts, it seems to me, has a more efficient capacity to reveal these repressions and therefore, as autonomous, reasonable individuals, bring the light those faulty and potentially character-weakening ideological super-structures that so prevent societies from evolving out of bigotry and hatred.
Capitalism as well, seems to be an entity of the same nature. Rather than face up to its weaknesses (creating competitive living environments whereupon the ultimate goal of the individual is to essentially one-up his neighbor in order to receive more money), it hides in a sense behind its ideological framework (undoubtedly driven forth by its constituent actors) creating the grounds for shortsighted, fear-driven obstructions to the progressive well being of the citizenry writ large. Governments are afraid to reveal their own repressive weaknesses and continue to hide behind their own un-evolved predilections of what is “best.” Perhaps the solution lies in the very “crises” sweeping the planet. Perhaps the world as we know it is having its mirror-image reflected back on itself, revealing the very flimsy and nonsensical repressions that create the ideologies that so usurp the creative and positive power of the human world.
However, it seems to me that if one were to view Ideology and Repression in the same light, under the same lens of analysis, it is more a natural progression to conclude that perhaps, one is simply the mask for the other. Whereas Ideology seems to be an overriding "view of one-in-the-world" from that one's perspective, taking into account all past experiences, learned and instinctive; it seems also to be, in perhaps more respects that I can deduce presently, a disguise, or a mask for the very things one represses (based on those world-views and nurtured belief systems). Freud's psychoanalytical approach to psychology sought to unearth, as it were--to excavate those repressed memories, fears, desires, etc...
It is interesting to consider, even if the notion ultimately fails to stand on its own, the idea that perhaps, the things human beings repress are essential to the characterizations and evolution of what, in their internal/external world-views, become Ideologies as such. That is to say, what one presumes to know as truth based on a preconceived ideological notion, may merely be the inversion, and/or negative-repression presented in "belief form." Foucault is regarding the two concepts in relation to their effect on power, and knowledge, and the force the two as symbiotic entities have over individuals and the societies they subsequently belong to. If it is the case then, it is no wonder that, as stated in Foucault’s Truth in Power, “Repression is a concept used above all in relation to sexuality;” it is indeed no wonder that notions of civil rights for people of different sexual orientations are such a problem that still divides the Western world.
In this light, one’s ideology is revealing itself through the very fears being repressed. Conservatives and religious people hide behind their ideologies so they never actually have to make an informed decision on civil rights for individuals who differ from them; their ideology becomes the disguise—the mask—of the very thing being repressed. When I say “disguised,” that isn’t to say that one is casted away in some metaphysical dimension separated in some spatial/temporal dimension, or “hidden from view,” but rather a blockade of sorts--an obstruction that hinders progression in regards to whatever contingent set of problems that society is attempting to resolve or explain.
Beyond sexuality though, it seems as though this notion pervades many problems that societal structures shake and rattle as a result from. Under what circumstance does one usually come to face the fears that have so restricted one’s growth, in virtue, in moral goodness? Usually those things that bring under heavy scrutiny their ideological foundations; those root beliefs that fix—weigh on the shoulders from birth—the individual maintains through repressed fears because of the “comforts” the ideology brings in allowing one to essentially avoid the very things that cause those fears, or those weaknesses in character that prevent such growth. The seeker of truth, the philosopher, the writer, the explorer of the arts, it seems to me, has a more efficient capacity to reveal these repressions and therefore, as autonomous, reasonable individuals, bring the light those faulty and potentially character-weakening ideological super-structures that so prevent societies from evolving out of bigotry and hatred.
Capitalism as well, seems to be an entity of the same nature. Rather than face up to its weaknesses (creating competitive living environments whereupon the ultimate goal of the individual is to essentially one-up his neighbor in order to receive more money), it hides in a sense behind its ideological framework (undoubtedly driven forth by its constituent actors) creating the grounds for shortsighted, fear-driven obstructions to the progressive well being of the citizenry writ large. Governments are afraid to reveal their own repressive weaknesses and continue to hide behind their own un-evolved predilections of what is “best.” Perhaps the solution lies in the very “crises” sweeping the planet. Perhaps the world as we know it is having its mirror-image reflected back on itself, revealing the very flimsy and nonsensical repressions that create the ideologies that so usurp the creative and positive power of the human world.
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