Political Ideologies and Political Parties in America

This book describes the development of the modern liberal and conservative ideologies that form the basis of our modern political parties.

Hans Noel (Author)

9781107038318, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 10 February 2014

242 pages, 28 b/w illus. 10 tables
23.5 x 15.8 x 1.8 cm, 0.45 kg

'The final point above is also true of the entire book: Political Ideologies and Political Parties in America is a must-read for scholars of American political parties, indeed for scholars of American politics in general. It will most certainly affect the ongoing academic conversations in these areas as scholars read and think about Noel's work.' Mark D. Brewer, University of Maine, Orono

Political Ideologies and Political Parties in America puts ideology front and center in the discussion of party coalition change. Treating ideology as neither a nuisance nor a given, the analysis describes the development of the modern liberal and conservative ideologies that form the basis of our modern political parties. Hans Noel shows that liberalism and conservatism emerged as important forces independent of existing political parties. These ideologies then reshaped parties in their own image. Modern polarization can thus be explained as the natural outcome of living in a period, perhaps the first in our history, in which two dominant ideologies have captured the two dominant political parties.

1. Introduction: distilling their frenzy from some academic scribbler
2. The coalition merchants: ideologies, parties, and their interaction
3. Creative synthesis: why ideology?
4. The independent development of ideology
5. Ideology remakes the parties
6. Issue politics in ideological context
7. Polarized parties
8. Conclusion: toward the study of creative synthesis.

Subject Areas: Political science & theory [JPA], Politics & government [JP]