How to Define the Elephant: Towards a Novel Conceptualization of Populism

Year 2022, Volume: 31 Issue: 1, 115 - 135, 15.04.2022

Giray Gerim

Abstract

In recent decades, a serious number of studies have been dedicated to define and conceptualize populism in order to enable proper and comparative analyses of the phenomenon. They usually studied populism by reducing it to an ideology, discourse or strategy and provided analytical approaches accordingly although some other approaches (style of communication, political project, etc.) are possible to come across in the relevant literature. Critically engaging with the most influential ones, this article ascertains two principal deficiencies in these bodies of work. Firstly, the minimal and generic definitions presented in these studies empty the concept to a broad extent. Secondly, most of the scholars assume the concentrated dimension of populism as the whole of the phenomenon and undertake its conceptualization with this assumption to a large extent. As a result of a comprehensive discussion on these main and some secondary deficiencies, this article offers two ways to treat them. Scholars who examine populism and make comparisons between different cases can either carry out their analyses by taking the multi-layered nature of the phenomenon into account or by clearly stating the dimension of populism which they study and, in this way, limit their work to this dimension without further claims. In addition to all these, showing the inadequacy of the Sartorian approaches that dominate the literature, the article discusses that Wittgensteinian approaches can provide appropriate alternative frameworks for the conceptualization of populism.

Keywords

Populism, Populist Politics, Populist Discourse, Populist Strategy, Populist Parties

Fili Nasıl Tanımlamalı: Yeni Bir Popülizm Kavramsallaştırmasına Doğru

Abstract

Son yıllarda, fenomenin doğru ve karşılaştırmalı analizlerini mümkün kılmak amacıyla, popülizmi tanımlamaya ve kavramsallaştırmaya yönelik ciddi sayıda çalışma yapılmıştır. İlgili literatürde başka yaklaşımlara (iletişim tarzı, siyasi proje vb.) rastlamak mümkün olsa da söz konusu çalışmalar popülizmi genellikle bir ideoloji, söylem veya stratejiye indirgeyerek incelemişler ve bu doğrultuda analitik yaklaşımlar sunmuşlardır. Bunlar arasında en etkili olanları eleştirel olarak ele alan bu makale, iki temel sorun tespit eder. Birincisi, bu çalışmalarda sunulan minimal ve genel tanımlar, kavramın içini geniş
ölçüde boşaltmaktadır. İkincisi, araştırmacıların büyük bir kesimi, popülizmin üzerine yoğunlaştıkları boyutunu fenomenin bütünü varsaymakta ve kavramsallaştırmasını büyük oranda bu varsayım üzerine inşa etmektedir. Bu iki temel sorun ve ayrıca bazı ikincil sorunlar hakkında kapsamlı bir tartışmanın sonucu olarak, makale, popülizm araştırmacıları için iki yol sunar. Popülizmi inceleyen ve farklı vakalar arasında karşılaştırmalar yapan araştırmacılar, analizlerini ya olgunun çok katmanlı yapısını dikkate alarak kurabilir ya da popülizmin inceledikleri boyutunu açıkça belirterek yürütebilir ve bu şekilde çalışmalarını sınırlayabilirler. Tüm bunlara ek olarak, makale, literatüre hâkim olan ve çalışmada eleştirel bir biçimde incelenen Sartorici yaklaşımların yetersizliğini göstererek Wittgensteincı yaklaşımların popülizmin kavramsallaştırılması için daha uygun alternatif çerçeveler sunabileceğini tartışır.

Keywords

Popülizm, Popülist Siyaset, Popülist Söylem, Popülist Strateji, Popülist Partiler

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