Political Left and Right: Our Hands-On Logic
The origins and immediate vitality of the left/right divide which emerged in French revolutionary politics from 1789 can only be understood against the background of a much older classification dynamic based on the primacy of the right hand, first described by Robert Hertz in 1909. This dynamic infu...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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PsychOpen GOLD/ Leibniz Institute for Psychology
2014-12-01
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| Series: | Journal of Social and Political Psychology |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://jspp.psychopen.eu/article/view/323 |
| _version_ | 1797965549436665856 |
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| author | Frits Bienfait Walter E. A. van Beek |
| author_facet | Frits Bienfait Walter E. A. van Beek |
| author_sort | Frits Bienfait |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The origins and immediate vitality of the left/right divide which emerged in French revolutionary politics from 1789 can only be understood against the background of a much older classification dynamic based on the primacy of the right hand, first described by Robert Hertz in 1909. This dynamic infused political thinking first in Versailles and since 1815 in democracies throughout the world. In the process, the classical left/right polarity acquired a new dimension: the complementary notions of ‘accepting’ and ‘questioning’ the existing social order. An essential feature of both the age-old classical polarity and the ensuing political polarity is that they are intimately bound up with local and evolving social contexts: there is no single content-based definition of left and right. As long as the majority of us are predisposed to use our right hand when acting in the world, ‘left versus right’ will remain the most important political antithesis in western-type democracies. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-11T02:01:49Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-64165399b6504a0bb62e408968845b2c |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2195-3325 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-11T02:01:49Z |
| publishDate | 2014-12-01 |
| publisher | PsychOpen GOLD/ Leibniz Institute for Psychology |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Social and Political Psychology |
| spelling | doaj.art-64165399b6504a0bb62e408968845b2c2023-01-03T03:58:36ZengPsychOpen GOLD/ Leibniz Institute for PsychologyJournal of Social and Political Psychology2195-33252014-12-012133534610.5964/jspp.v2i1.323jspp.v2i1.323Political Left and Right: Our Hands-On LogicFrits Bienfait0Walter E. A. van Beek1Department of Culture Studies, Tilburg University, Tilburg, The NetherlandsDepartment of Culture Studies, Tilburg University, Tilburg, The NetherlandsThe origins and immediate vitality of the left/right divide which emerged in French revolutionary politics from 1789 can only be understood against the background of a much older classification dynamic based on the primacy of the right hand, first described by Robert Hertz in 1909. This dynamic infused political thinking first in Versailles and since 1815 in democracies throughout the world. In the process, the classical left/right polarity acquired a new dimension: the complementary notions of ‘accepting’ and ‘questioning’ the existing social order. An essential feature of both the age-old classical polarity and the ensuing political polarity is that they are intimately bound up with local and evolving social contexts: there is no single content-based definition of left and right. As long as the majority of us are predisposed to use our right hand when acting in the world, ‘left versus right’ will remain the most important political antithesis in western-type democracies.http://jspp.psychopen.eu/article/view/323political leftpolitical rightpolarityHertzclassificationorderanthropologycultures |
| spellingShingle | Frits Bienfait Walter E. A. van Beek Political Left and Right: Our Hands-On Logic Journal of Social and Political Psychology political left political right polarity Hertz classification order anthropology cultures |
| title | Political Left and Right: Our Hands-On Logic |
| title_full | Political Left and Right: Our Hands-On Logic |
| title_fullStr | Political Left and Right: Our Hands-On Logic |
| title_full_unstemmed | Political Left and Right: Our Hands-On Logic |
| title_short | Political Left and Right: Our Hands-On Logic |
| title_sort | political left and right our hands on logic |
| topic | political left political right polarity Hertz classification order anthropology cultures |
| url | http://jspp.psychopen.eu/article/view/323 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT fritsbienfait politicalleftandrightourhandsonlogic AT waltereavanbeek politicalleftandrightourhandsonlogic |