Political myth: definition, types and examples

Myths accompany humanity since the advent of public consciousness. Ancient people explained the whole world and natural phenomena by the actions of mystical creatures and spirits. For example, in ancient China, thunder and lightning were not considered natural phenomena, but a battle of dragons. In later times in ancient Greece and pagan Russia, this was due to the result of the action of the gods. The appearance of documented political myths dates back to about this period, examples of which can be found in the writings of scholars such as Pythagoras, Plato, and others.

It would seem that in the 21st century, when thanks to the Internet access to information became much easier, myth-making should have disappeared. However, the same Internet facilitates the almost instant delivery of information to the target audience.

The concept

There are many definitions of what a political myth is, and quite complex. For example, that it is an altered form of political consciousness in which the knowledge and understanding of factual information is replaced by images, symbols. There are more understandable definitions. For example, that these are stories used for the purposes of political struggle, sacralization of power, denigrating opponents. Such a definition implies the understanding that a classical myth is a traditional legend figuratively showing a historical event and serving to explain the origin of customs, traditions, beliefs or natural phenomena. Usually its origin is unknown, while a myth that has a political property is often professionally launched and has a specific circle of people in whose favor it is created.

E. Cassirer in the "Technique of Modern Political Myths" noted that they do not arise spontaneously, are not the result of unbridled imagination. On the contrary, they are artificially created by "skillful and dexterous masters." National history and traditions determine the relationship of political myth and political culture. The latter forms the mythology of society, has a real impact on people's behavior and national processes in society. They are an essential part of the country's political culture. For example, in Indonesia, political myths and traditions of the struggle against communism are an element of any election campaign.

History

One of the very first political myths was aimed at sacralizing power. There are few ancient states where there would be no stories about the divine origin of the rulers. For example, in ancient Korea, the ruling dynasty originated from Tangun, the grandson of the god of heaven.

The first case of "black PR" was recorded by Plato, who in the treatise "State" called for the elimination of incorrect, harmful myths. In these stories, Theseus and other ancient Greek heroes, children of the gods, behaved almost like ordinary people, committing terrible, unholy acts. The Greek philosopher believed that the gods and heroes could not commit bad deeds.

Another example of a political myth, which formed the basis for understanding the world in Ancient Japan, also spoke of the divine origin of the imperial dynasty. Already from the descendants of the gods, the founders of the noble families received government posts. All these legends not only justified the power of the ruler, but also sanctified the principles of social stratification and consolidated the hierarchical system of social structure. Often such stories justified the right of one group of people to rule over others. They were supposed to contribute to the unity of the population by introducing them to common symbolism.

To a certain level of development of society, all political myths were associated with various deities through which the sacralization of power passed. Gradually, other mythological narratives began to appear, for example, about the ownership of power and the right to the people, which were developed at all times, from antiquity to the present day.

In the 19th century, scientific articles appeared on political myths, in which various theories were developed, for example, on the viceroy of God on earth, on the personification of the absolute spirit, on heroes and racial superiority. The development of society in the 20th century, especially the emergence and dissemination of universal suffrage in most countries of the world, significantly increased the need for political products.

An example of a political myth in Russia is the divine nature of royal power. But he was debunked after the October Revolution of 1917. Then there were several more ideological stories related to the authorities that were wrecked. For example, about the wise leader. This myth was debunked after the death of Stalin, and the people's right to power ended with the collapse of the Soviet state. This shows that, unlike traditional myths that have existed for millennia, political people have a relatively short lifespan.

Recent decades have been characterized by intense myth-making. In many countries, it is used as a campaign tool. Both old and new or updated myths are used. In the United States and many Western countries, stories about Russian aggression, which was formerly called Soviet, are often used for this. For Russia, myths about American or Western expansionism are characteristic.

Features and differences

Modern political myths, like traditional ones, tell about the past, present and predict the future. They are presented in an accessible form intended for the target audience. The difference from the traditional ones is that they no longer have a sacred status, but should nevertheless be perceived as an indisputable truth by a certain social group. Like mystical stories, they must present their model of reality and a model of action for those who believe in them. The following properties of political and traditional myths are usually distinguished:

Polymorphism. The same set of symbols is used, for example, almost all peoples have stories about the “wise ruler”. Moreover, one and the same topic can have different goals and emotional coloring.
Limitedness. To create myths, a limited number of characters are used, which can have many combinations.
Distraction. Myths are not based on existing experience and are not related to empirical reality.
Fundamental. They are based on faith that does not require verification, regardless of their truth.
Static The myth is not tied to a specific historical time; it lives in its own dimension.

Some scholars note the following differences: modern myths usually tell about real people, events of the present and recent past. They are short-lived, are not inherited from ancient times and are distributed through media, rather than verbally or through sacred texts.

Essence

Political myths and stereotypes have always been created by someone, so they are first perceived as a possible reality, and then become in the mass consciousness an obvious and undeniable truth. They build their own picture of reality, which was originally tied to specific objects. These stories operate on images, which provides them with recognizability and memorability.

At the same time, like any image, the myth allows a different interpretation of the details, which allows you to create many options with different details. Each new adherent of the myth supplements the basic images with his inherent emotional colors. On the basis of one political stereotype, for example, about a conspiracy, various versions of the same story can be created. They have an irrational foundation associated with the emotional sphere. The vitality and longevity of a mythological story is determined primarily by the emotions that it evokes. People should empathize with the heroes and identify with them.

Structure

Each political myth has its own structure, consisting of certain components.

The following basic elements are usually distinguished:

Archetypes. This is the basis, the "skeleton" of a political myth, the original image that determines its emotional coloring. It is usually formed on the basis of the experience of all previous generations.
Mythologemes. This is an accepted canon of describing reality, a cliche and at the same time a product of perception. An example is the traits of omniscience and concern for each citizen, adopted in the ideological practice of describing the leaders of North Korea.
Symbolism. It serves to unite real events with mythologies and archetypes.
Means of implementation. Called to change the political behavior of people. These are ideologemes that serve to describe specific situations, events, for example, campaign slogans. It is also a political ritual that allows the bearers of myth to unite in space (demonstrations, rallies) or in time (celebration of ideological dates, holidays). Sometimes the Internet is also included here, which makes it possible to participate in the virtual space.

Kinds

As Ernst Cassirer noted in The Technique of Contemporary Political Myths, there is not a single natural phenomenon or event in human life that could not be interpreted as a myth. At the same time, researchers combined all these diverse stories into several main topics:

About the conspiracy. This is one of the most popular myths: everything bad happens in the country due to the action of secret forces against which any means of struggle can be used, so you need to unite in the face of the enemy.
About the golden age. Calls for a return to basics when love, freedom and equality reigned. He also calls for a bright future, which will be built on these patterns.
About the hero-savior. Specific characters are endowed with the features of an ideal person. The hero has the highest moral qualities and talents of a warrior and commander.
About the father of nations. It tells about a fair and kind policy that cares for ordinary people, he knows about his problems. And everything would be fine in the country, but his environment hinders him.
About the heroic past of the nation. Once upon a time lived great ancestors, the most powerful, intelligent and moral. They performed epic feats for the glory of the Fatherland.
On unity. It is based on the opposition: there are friends and foes, friends and enemies, we and they. Aliens are the source of all troubles, they seek to trample our values, therefore the salvation of the nation lies in its unity.

Features

Political myths act as a protective shield against external destructive influence, the reliability of which depends on its fundamental nature. First of all, political mythology is always symbolic. In the public mind, any socio-political process is associated with a specific objective content. For most people, the swastika is a symbol of Nazism, and the red star is the Soviet Union. Most often, symbols from ancient times or other civilizations are borrowed. For example, the same swastika in eastern civilizations is a symbol of movement, a star - of secret knowledge and power.

Another feature is overvaluation. The political myth is based on the deep, emotionally colored basic human needs. Therefore, for such overvaluation, a person is able to sacrifice a lot. For the sake of the idea of social equality, which is based on the myth of the Golden Age and the superman, more than once people took up arms.

The processes

Social life is a fertile ground for the emergence of mythology, because people do not have reliable information about the socio-political processes taking place in the country. The population is circumvented by ideological interpretations and rumors. People distort and adapt all political information in order to make it recognizable and not contradicting existing ideas. The result of this distortion is political myths. They are formed through processes such as:

Inversion. Changing the incoming information to protect their ideas from deformation.
Rationalization. Finding acceptable reasons for the public consciousness or justification of unacceptable events, the appearance of impossible causal relationships.
Projection. Society transfers its own properties and conditions to external objects.
Personification. Gives the perfect image to a specific person or political phenomenon.

Functions

Political myth-making is constantly being improved, giving out new stories that, despite their diversity, serve well-defined purposes.

Myths carry the following main socio-political functions:

Unifying. It serves to rally disparate groups of the population, by forming common political convictions, a shared faith, based on common knowledge and assessments. The most commonly used image is the “enemy” (the simplest political stereotype) and the myth of unity. The formation of political parties and movements takes place in accordance with the division of people into “friends” (those who share faith in myths) and “strangers”.
Adaptive. For the interaction of the community with the social environment, people create a subjective picture of the world in which real connections are intertwined with mythological representations of reality. The society is building a typical scheme of interaction with political reality. For example, in an authoritarian society, an idea is created of a country governed by a great leader and leading people to prosperity and prosperity. If most of the people believe in this, then there is a high efficiency of this function.
The legitimization of power. In any society, the political system needs the support of the population, the people's faith in the effectiveness, justice and legality of the institutions of power. The people are explained why they need an existing political structure; they are forced to believe in the legality of its actions. Such mythology encourages a person to recognize the special status of power, the implementation of social laws and cultural norms. Examples of the use of myths in political campaigns: in the case of nationalization, the unjustly acquired wealth is transferred to those who created it, and privatization is explained by ineffective management.
Psychotherapeutic. In crisis moments of the development of society, when state and social institutions cannot satisfy the basic needs of people, myths provide an opportunity to get a break, psychological relaxation, and relieve stress. In such periods, people have increased faith in the irrational, so myths in a brighter future help to survive difficult times.
Ethical. Mythology reflects the moral traditions of society, its practical and historical collective experience. Myths affect the moral environment of society, in turn, morality penetrates mythology, forming and rallying groups to achieve specific goals. All this contributes to the formation of group morality, which does not always correspond to universal. Many religious sects, such as ISIS, create "their own morality", considering all others to be enemies.
Aesthetic. The mythological picture of the world directly affects people's perception of the beautiful. Along with myths, assessment can also change. For example, along with the collapse of Soviet ideology, the romance of the “man of labor” also disappeared.