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Political Science Canadian

Left and Right

The Small World of Political Ideas

by (author) Christopher Cochrane

Publisher
McGill-Queen's University Press
Initial publish date
Oct 2015
Category
Canadian
  • Hardback

    ISBN
    9780773545786
    Publish Date
    Dec 2015
    List Price
    $100.00
  • Paperback / softback

    ISBN
    9780773545793
    Publish Date
    Dec 2015
    List Price
    $40.95
  • eBook

    ISBN
    9780773597457
    Publish Date
    Oct 2015
    List Price
    $100.00

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Description

The words "left" and "right" often signal a political divide in debates about topics as diverse as abortion, capital punishment, gun control, social welfare, taxation, immigration, and the environment. Despite claims that political polarization is in decline, its persistence suggests that it is inherent to our society. At the same time, variations in the perception of each side indicate that these labels do not fully capture the reality of ideological disagreement.

In Left and Right, Christopher Cochrane traces the origins of this political language to the very nature of ideology. What is ideology, what does it look like, and how does it manifest itself in patterns of political disagreement in Western democracies? Drawing on five decades of evidence from political scientists, including public opinion surveys, elite surveys, and content analysis of political party election platforms, Cochrane employs a new method to analyze the structure and evolution of the left/right divide in twenty-one Western countries since 1945. He then delves into the central argument of the book - that the language of left and right describes a meaningful, perceptible, and quantifiable pattern of political disagreement that has persisted over time and around the world.

Calling for an adjustment to the way we view Canadian politics, Left and Right opens a window into the world of political ideologies - a world we see every day, but rarely analyze, define, or agree on.

About the author

Christopher Cochrane is assistant professor of political science at the University of Toronto.

Christopher Cochrane's profile page