Dean, J orcid.org/0000-0002-1028-0566 and Maiguashca, B (2020) Did somebody say populism? Towards a renewal and reorientation of populism studies. Journal of Political Ideologies, 25 (1). pp. 11-27. ISSN 1356-9317
Abstract
Responding to the recent explosion in scholarly analysis of populism, this paper offers a conceptual mapping and critique of the dominant schools of thought within the burgeoning field of populism studies. In the first half of the paper we suggest that two broad conceptions of populism – one associated with Cas Mudde, the other with Ernesto Laclau – have come to dominate the field. Yet neither of these approaches, we argue, are able to satisfactorily capture the specificity of contemporary forms of radical politics. Thus, the second part of the paper examines possible responses to this conceptual impasse. On the one hand, we recommend a move towards more theoretically and sociologically enriched accounts of populism, by drawing on the insights and concepts of political sociology, political theory and cultural studies. On the other, drawing on recent work by Benjamin De Cleen, Jason Glynos and Aurelien Mondon, we suggest a partial reorientation of populism towards thinking about populism as a signifier (rather than as a concept). In so doing, we conclude with a call for greater sensitivity to, and awareness of, the role that discourses about populism (including scholarly discourses) play in sustaining existing relations of power and ideology.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2020 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. This is an author produced version of a paper published in Journal of Political Ideologies. Uploaded in accordance with the publisher's self-archiving policy. |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Leeds |
Academic Units: | The University of Leeds > Faculty of Education, Social Sciences and Law (Leeds) > School of Politics & International Studies (POLIS) (Leeds) |
Funding Information: | Funder Grant number Leverhulme Trust Not Known |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Publications |
Date Deposited: | 13 Sep 2019 08:50 |
Last Modified: | 06 Jul 2021 00:38 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Taylor & Francis |
Identification Number: | 10.1080/13569317.2020.1699712 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:150816 |