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Awarded for Ideas of Power (Cambridge University Press, 2019). Given to the top 10% of academic books reviewed by the Association of College and Research Libraries each year for excellent scholarship.

Choice Outstanding Academic Title

Cape mission liberalism and the South African liberation struggle

Aristocracy, Democracy, and Liberalism: Using the Tocquevillean Dichotomy to Understand Modern Liberalism

The problem of Donald Trump and the Static Spectrum Fallacy

Party Control of Government and American Party Ideology Development

The President and the Parties’ Ideologies: Party Ideas about Foreign Policy Since 1900

My guests today are Hyram and Verlan Lewis. Hyram and Verlan are brothers. Hyram is an associate professor of history at Brigham Young University, Idaho, and Verlan is a political scientist at Harvard Center for American Political Studies. Together, Hyram and Verlan have written a very interesting new book called "The Myth of Left and Right: How the Political Spectrum Misleads and Harms America"
​​​​​​​In this book, they challenge the widely held belief that the political left and right represent two distinct philosophies, liberalism or progressivism on one end and conservatism on the other. Instead, they argue that people on the left and the right are more like sports fans. They are born into a particular tribe and then they adopt the random assortment of beliefs that tribe currently holds. Now they acknowledge that there are such things as political philosophies, like libertarianism, for example. They just think those philosophies have nothing to do with what we call the left and the right in everyday speech. In other words, the words left and right do not name philosophies. They name arbitrary tribes that then invent convenient, but false stories about what their philosophies are. That thesis is the topic of this conversation and I think it's very interesting. I really enjoyed this conversation and I hope you do too.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Myth of Left and Right with Hyrum Lewis and Verlan Lewis

Hyrum and Verlan Lewis: Stop Buying the 'Left v. Right' Myth

Brothers, professors, and authors Hyrum Lewis and Verlan Lewis join Governors Bredesen and Haslam to discuss their new book "The Myth of Left and Right", and its premise that the "left" and "right" are social groups united by tribal loyalty rather than consistent philosophies. Could a more multidimensional view of politics improve our civic discourse? This episode was recorded live at the Chattanooga Rotary Club in August 2024.

Is the Political Left and Right a Myth? – with Hyrum Lewis and Verlan Lewis

Losing Left and Right? A Conversation with Hyrum Lewis and Verlan Lewis.

This groundbreaking book presents a new understanding of ideological change. It shows how and why America's political parties have evolved.

Ideas of Power

A groundbreaking argument that the political spectrum today is inadequate to twenty-first century America and a major source of the confusion and hostility that characterize contemporary political discourse.As American politics descends into a battle of anger and hostility between two groups called "left" and "right," people increasingly ask: What is the essential difference between these two ideological groups? In The Myth of Left and Right, Hyrum Lewis and Verlan Lewis provide the surprising answer: nothing. As the authors argue, there is no enduring philosophy, disposition, or essence uniting the various positions associated with the liberal and conservative ideologies of today. Far from being an eternal dividing line of American politics, the political spectrum came to the United States in the 1920s and, since then, left and right have evolved in so many unpredictable and even contradictory ways that there is currently nothing other than tribal loyalty holding together the many disparate positions that fly under the banners of "liberal" and "conservative." Powerfully argued and cutting against the grain of most scholarship on polarization in America, this book shows why the idea that the political spectrum measures deeply held worldviews is the central political myth of our time and a major cause of the confusion and vitriol that characterize public discourse.

The Myth of Left and Right

Political Ideologies

Parties in American Political Development

Verlan Lewis is the Stirling Professor of Constitutional Studies, and an associate professor of political science, at UVU where he researches, teaches, and writes about the American Founding, constitutional pluralism, political parties, and ideology. His writing has appeared in a variety of publications, including The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, The Hill, Political Science Quarterly, Party Politics, Studies in American Political Development, Presidential Studies Quarterly, and The Forum, among others. His first book, Ideas of Power, was published by Cambridge University Press in 2019. His second book, The Myth of Left and Right, was published by Oxford University Press in 2023. Prior to coming to UVU, Dr. Lewis earned a B.A. in political science and American studies from Brigham Young University, an M.Phil. in political thought and intellectual history from Cambridge University, and a Ph.D. in government from the University of Virginia. He has also held visiting academic appointments at Stanford University and Harvard University. At UVU, he helped create the M.A. program in constitutional government, civics, and law.

Ideology

Political Parties

Polical Science

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UVU Directory

Opinion: A spirit of amity and mutual deference

Understanding and Overcoming Political Polarization with Constitutional Expert Dr. Verlan Lewis

Is AOC the most conservative Democrat in Congress?

The Myth of Ideological Polarization

Former Tennessee Governors Bill Haslam and Phil Bredesen take on topics including crime, the media, gun violence, and education disparities with expert guests of differing viewpoints. From the Howard H. Baker Jr. School of Public Policy and Public Affairs at the University of Tennessee, "You Might be Right" aims to inspire the next generation of leaders in government, public policy, and public service by demonstrating that thoughtful civil conversations about tough topics are still possible.

You Might Be Right

Conversations with Coleman is where deep thinkers and curious minds meet for sharp, surprising, and unfiltered chats. Hosted by Coleman Hughes, writer, thinker, and guy who asks the questions other people dodge - this podcast isn’t about debating. It’s about discovery. Politics, philosophy, race, culture, science: it’s all fair game. If you're done with hot takes and hungry for real-talk, come join the conversation.

Conversations with Coleman

Stirling Professor of Constitutional Studies

Verlan Lewis discusses how moving beyond the familiar “left–right” political spectrum may create new possibilities for pluralism and peacemaking. Drawing on his recent co-authored book The Myth of Left and Right, Lewis invites us to rethink how these political categories shape our society and how letting go of them could strengthen our constitutional culture and civic peace.

Verlan Lewis is the Stirling Professor of Constitutional Studies and an associate professor of political science at Utah Valley University, where he teaches classes on American political thought, institutions, and development. His writing has been published by The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, Cambridge University Press, Oxford University Press, Political Science Quarterly, Studies in American Political Development, Presidential Studies Quarterly, and Party Politics, among others. He earned degrees from Brigham Young University, Cambridge University, and the University of Virginia, and has held academic fellowships at Stanford University and Harvard University. His recent co-authored book, The Myth of Left and Right, shows how the familiar left–right political spectrum harms America by undermining constitutional government and peacemaking.

Verlan Lewis "Constitutional Pluralism and Peacemaking"

Political scientists Hyrum and Verlan Lewis discuss the 2024 election and the power of self-narratives in American politics.

0:00- Introduction
0:53- The Myth Of Left And Right
7:19-  Politics is getting more rigidly polarized
9:50- Has the Republican Party become ‘far right’?
14:09- Politics are granular, not binary
19:20- People are more loyal to parties than positions
21:41- Trajectory of the Democratic Party
26:40- Democrats must embrace pluralism to win
31:05- Pluralism vs. Monism
32:37- Ad: ZBiotics
34:23- Trajectory of the Republican Party
37:33- How do RFK Jr and third parties fit into all this?
42:02- Backgrounds of the Lewis brothers
43:38- Political parties today function like churches
48:06- Why do the major parties flip flop so much?
53:47- There has never been a liberal or conservative consensus
58:51- Does the left hate America?
1:02:28- Finding hope against cynicism in American politics

reason.com/podcasts
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In the wake of massive victories by Donald Trump and Republicans, here's a question worth asking: What does today's GOP really stand for? Longstanding support for free trade and overseas wars seems to have been replaced with tariffs and non-interventionism.

Hyrum Lewis and Verlan Lewis are the authors of The Myth of Left and Right. They argue that the way we talk about the political spectrum misleads and confuses us because it reduces complex special-interest coalitions to one or two issues that really aren't representative of what the parties actually stand for. As a result, they say that the next four years will be as fractious within the GOP (and the Democratic Party too) as the last four.

#politics  #election  #podcast  #interview

Stop buying the 'Left v. Right' myth | Hyrum and Verlan Lewis | The Reason Interview

Today we’re going to get a little political, without the hostility. We’re exploring the bias, misrepresentation and dangers that come with ascribing to the ‘left wing’ and ‘right wing’ political spectrum. Political scientist, professor in political and constitutional studies, and co-author of ‘The Myth of Left and Right’ Verlan Lewis joins us to debunk the essentialist theory behind the left/right concept. While it's still a fairly young idea, Verlan stresses how it is increasingly harmful, by creating a false narrative of division that kills humility and perpetuates self-righteousness. “Don’t talk about politics at the dinner table” (or in business) is what we often hear, but Verlan says we need more, not less,  moderate and civil discourse on political issues, without the damaging rhetoric that comes with left/right ideologies.  

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Learn more about:
This episode https://www.looking-outside.com
Connect with host Jo Lepore https://www.linkedin.com/in/joannalepore & https://x.com/AussieJoLepore
Buy The Myth of Left and Right book https://global.oup.com/academic/product/the-myth-of-left-and-right-9780197680629?lang=en&cc=us & on Amazon https://www.amazon.com/s?k=the+myth+of+left+and+right&hvadid=631530832794&hvdev=c&hvlocphy=9199173&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=e&hvrand=7659062338173601585&hvtargid=kwd-1900027169474&hydadcr=27890_14512659&mcid=4a7655c6ef363cf49d70a3b66518c5cd&tag=googhydr-20&ref=pd_sl_2vi33jlp19_e
Follow Verlan on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/verlanlewis/ & X https://x.com/verlanlewis
Read more of Verlan's research https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=7m9-V9UAAAAJ&hl=en
Check out his Future Tense podcast appearance https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/why-in-the-21st-century-are-we-still-talking-about/id305253468?i=1000666210764 

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If you enjoyed this episode, check out:
Culture https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6dxDbv-JE3c&t=2055s
Future Risks https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jExJxyhRc5s&t=14s
Re-Thinking https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FGk4Bc5cr_c

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Looking Outside is a podcast exploring fresh perspectives of familiar topics. 
New episodes every 2 weeks. Never the same topic.
Subscribe: https://www.youtube.com/@lookingoutside?sub_confirmation=1

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In this episode:

00:00 Intro
01:29 Who is Verlan?
03:40 History of left/right concept
08:18 Using flawed frameworks
10:36 Why the more educated are more biased
14:13 Flip flopping political policies
18:42 Youth disillusionment with politics
24:10 A totalitarian outcome
30:59 Media influence
35:55 Political predictors 
45:30 Do we need more moderates?
53:53 Left/right going global
56:37 How Verlan looks outside

#foresight #future #lookingoutside #politics #leftright #leftwing #rightwing #politicalscience

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