Heroes on the Right

Abstract

olitics and political movements seldom succeed on the basis of their articulated programs and platforms alone. Most observers of the recent counter-cultural movements -the New Left, youth -have been quick t o make this point. Yet, with the exception of Lipset and Raab'sl historical survey of the right, most explanations of the politics and movements of the right have not proceeded past pointing t o (or, perhaps, at) the rightist authoritarian, viz. "extremist", personality in such a way as to leave the impression that the right is little more than a collection of similar personality-types. A much more fruitful approach to any kind of political movement is through that movement's cultural and social organization. For example, my understanding of t h e right suggests that it faces and meets the recurring problem of recruiting, winning, and holding adherents in the same ways as other movements. The new member is gradually socialized into the movement through increasing exposure and commitment to its values and symbols. Further, t o be considered a full member, acquaintance with only the programmatic goals of the movement is insufficient; the new member must also b e conversant with the inner, unofficial vocabulary of the movement. At some point, one enters into full participation with the movement, including seeing the world and one's self through the ideological lens of the movement, or oneleaves the movement.Thus, any movement must d o more than just attract like-minded personalitytypes. It must also win the allegiance of those new participants and make them into "members". As we try t o understand the dynamics of a movement, it is important to maintain this distinction. It may well be that the initial attraction t o rightist movements is based on a congruence between personality and political program; it is still a separate problem to understand how the new member is socialized into the movement. In trying to understand this latter process, a focus on the content of the popular culture of the movement is necessary. Rightists -n o more leftists or moderates -are never fully described by a simple list of their political goals. We should also want to know the full connection between those politics and