Ideology and Discourse

Discourse and ideology talk of the correlations between power and knowledge. They are used to understand how knowledge is used in order to control others.
These terms are very often used in discussion, but what exactly do they mean?


Discourse

The concept of discourse derived from linguistics as a form of organising language. It is applied in various scientific fields, each of which describe its meaning differently. It is therefore difficult to give one concise definition of it. Sarah Mills indicates this in her book, where she demonstrates the various uses of the term.

Discourse suggest what is prudent or allowed to be said about a subject. It directs the limits and codes of discussion, while structuring behaviour. Discourses construct regimes of truth, which are understood to be true, but in fact are not.

Discursive thinking means to reason through a logical argumentation, explanation and justification of spoken opinions, and can be developed by using rules, schemes and strategies directly related to the performed task.

Media discourse refers to interactions between the media and its recipients. It has been analysed by Coleman and Ross who stress the importance of representation and communication.


Ideology

Like discourse, the term ‘ideology’ has different meanings, respective to the context it is used in. Many philosophers, such as Marx, Engels, Lukcs, Gramsci, Adorno, Althusser attempted to tackle it.
Ideology is a collection of ideas, opinions and beliefs describing reality, incorporating the assessment and behavioural rules of social movements and political parties. It creates an image of the existing world and presents a vision of the future. An ideology consists of philosophical, economic, legal, ethical and religious concepts and is a ‘shared experience’. It determines the values and objectives to justify political action.

Ideologies are the ideas proclaimed by dominant groups within society, by the help of which people attempt to understand their purpose in life. Much like stereotypes, ideologies are not untrue, but they might be truthful to some extent.

According to Marx the dominant ideology within society is the one of its dominant class. It is a ‘false consciousness’ of its recipients whose interests it does not reflect, which, as Gramsci would say, leads to a cultural hegemony. Therefore the media have an immense ideological power: they create an unconscious fantasy, shaping their audiences’ reality.