Is the left-right spectrum an illusion? A widespread delusion that amplifies division?

For a common objection and response to that, see the pinned comment. For info about my work on political polarization, see https://american-anger.com. For full episode details (including resources related to this topic), see https://behavior-podcast.com/is-the-left-right-spectrum-concept-a-matrix-like-illusion.

Is the idea of a left-right political spectrum a massive illusion? Is there no consistent “left” and no consistent “right”? My guest is Hyrum Lewis, co-author of "The Myth of Left and Right: How the Political Spectrum Misleads and Harms America." He argues we’ve embraced a simplistic, faulty idea of an essential “left/liberalism” and an essential “right/conservatism.” And that, similar to embracing a faulty medical idea (like the idea of there being four humors), embracing a faulty political theory has hurt us in major ways. For one thing, it creates a perception that instead of there being many different issues, there is just a single issue (left versus right) and that choosing the right “team” gains you access to all the right ideas. Embracing that concept in turn amplifies conflict and anger, by making our divides seem like a war between two set and essential ideologies. It makes it easier to embrace a good-versus-bad way of seeing our political divides.

Topics include: why Hyrum believes the left-right spectrum is an illusion; common objections to their idea; how persuasive political thinkers have found their idea; the ways in which language and foundational concepts can amplify divides; the horseshoe theory; ways we might speak and write in better ways about our political disagreements, and more.

For related resources and an article by Hyrum summarizing these ideas, see https://behavior-podcast.com/is-the-left-right-spectrum-concept-a-matrix-like-illusion.