It’s not too far of a stretch to say that our ideologies are derived from the examples around us. After all, it is the basis for materialism. But when those examples are based in ideals, then we wrap ourselves in a lie and our ideology is manipulated to the benefit of others.
Why am I writing this? Because propaganda doesn’t work if you know it is propaganda. Or maybe it does. But either way it’s worth a shot.
Stories
The prevalent ideal, and the structure which we are taught to perceive ourselves, (in the west) is the monomyth; the hero’s journey.
The hero’s journey is a story about individualism, where answering a call to adventure will result in the hero coming home not only better off but the struggle results in his transformation into a “great man”, tying into great man theory, which states that great men are heroes who are able to rise against the odds and defeat rivals while inspiring followers.
our perception of self
So as this is repeated throughout media, we start to apply this story structure to ourselves. (since our ideologies are derivative of the examples around us) We become potential heroes who need to undergo trials to become great men. These trials may be something direct like answering a draft, or indirect like working overtime. Refusal of the trial, by this framework, will lead to stagnation. His flowering world becomes a wasteland of stones.
(Yes, I’m being purposefully politically incorrect because it’s written in a sarcastic tone)
In other words, the hero’s journey stops becoming just a framework for fiction but a framework for life; a perception of life. And as an idealistic framework, it can be molded into whatever the propagandist sees fit, with convenient subsections and tools to do so.
Propagation (propaganda) of ideals
… is done through media. All Hollywood writers, up to the recent modern era have followed the framework of the hero’s journey. That’s why it’s so predictable. Any deviation will be considered a “risky endeavour” and will not be accepted. (I’ve been meaning to do a write up on risk in the future) As per Chomsky and Herman’s propaganda model, other story frameworks are filtered out through ownership.
An alternative
Society is a self referencing system. As part of that society, you are both the observer and participant in the system. As you, the observer, is impacted by the system, you will react accordingly to the system and seek to influence it.
As such, your life is not set in stone and your life will not play out like a story with an intro, climax, and resolution. Your life in capitalism will be, at best, you using the opportunities given to you to create more opportunities. If you don’t have any opportunities, then be prepared to beg for them.
And I put emphasis on the word given, because unlike the ideology where hero’s are born or they are made through struggle, in capitalism, you are selected by other great men to be a hero. There is a common saying that you must prove your worth in order to better your position, but that worth itself is subjective. The result is that bettering your position is completely subjective.
why did I write this? How can we use this?
What I provide to you is a paradigm for criticism and self criticism. In addition to understanding, analysis and criticism of society as a whole, you may also analyze yourself through this lens and identify any ideology that you have that you might want to rethink your position on, as chances are that you’ve been exposed to this media.