You hear the words bandied about anytime you turn on the TV, stand in line at the store, or check your Facebook newsfeed: “lslamo-fascist,” “feminazi,” “democratic socialist,” “liberal commie,” and others. They are all trying and often failing to use ideology to explain a point or characterize an opponent.

Politicians and pundits alike use ideology as a rhetorical device because it gives a simple and emotive way to associate them with favored leaders and policies, and opponents with reviled ones; however, owing to both the ignorance of the average citizen and of pundits themselves these attempts are often unsuccessful and only serve to dilute their potential. To combat this epidemic of bad rhetoric I have decided to create an easy and effective guide to the major political ideologies so we can say what we mean and sound more informed when we argue.

The first place to start describing political ideologies is to understand just what ideology is. Ideology broadly speaking is a set of political principles and beliefs organized in a particular way around a set of positions, policies, and philosophies to achieve some large, frequently utopian goal. Most ideologies are umbrella categories consisting of several different interpretations, which may or may not be hostile to each other.

To start with let’s examine the current staple of Western political liberalism and its major varieties. Liberalism- This ideology originated out of the intellectual currents of European enlightenment, particularly the writings of John Locke, and became what can be considered the first modern ideology.

The core principles of liberalism revolve around the primacy of reason in thinking and decision making, social and religious toleration, individualism, and limits on the reach of authority. The principles find expression in capitalism, human rights, free expression, and more recently in democracy and international institutions.

There are three major offshoots of liberalism active in the world today. Social liberalism-A school of thought that combines government regulation of the economy, the social safety net, and a wholesale embrace of democracy to compensate for the shortcomings of classical liberalism.

Neoliberalism-A school of thought that sought a return to liberalism’s economic roots and uses state power to advance the market; it is currently the dominant ideology across much of the Western world. Social Democracy-A defector branch of socialism that advocates a mixed economy of private and state enterprise with a generous welfare state, its typified by the Scandinavian countries.

Conservatism- This wasthe second ideology to form. Conservatism originated out of the reaction to the changes wrought by enlightenment, particularly the French revolution, and sought to reassert the status quo. The core principles are devotion to the status quo, the need for strict hierarchy, the fundamental difference between people, and the emphasis on traditional structures such as family, church, and crown. These principles usually take the form of a system of nobility, agrarianism, and a state religion in practice.

Conservatism is broadly speaking a dead ideology in the West since the end of the First World War as the great empires and monarchies of Europe were destroyed. It now lives on only infringe monarchist parties, fundamentalist religious sects, and the upper echelons of the wealthy elite. Outside of Europe conservatism enjoys a more active legacy amongst a smattering of theocracies, monarchies, and authoritarian dictatorships.

Socialism-The third ideology and by far the least understood. Socialism arose as a reaction to the economic upheavals of capitalism and initially sought to return to an idealized agrarian society. The core principles of socialism revolve around egalitarianism and solidarity between workers of all nations on the basis of class. In practice, these take the shape of worker organization, ownership of the means of production, and wealth redistribution.

After the various failed socialist experiment of the 19^th and 20^th century, socialism is largely a dead ideology with only a few scattered adherents. However, in the wake of the global financial crisis and rising income inequality, it has regained popularity among disaffected workers and youth desperate for change.

Socialism is too varied and fractious in its thinking and followers to give an accurate breakdown; however, it can be split into roughly two camps. On the one side are the moderate Democratic Socialists who advocate using peaceful means anddemocratic systems to bring about socialism. On the other are the hardcore Revolutionary Socialists who advocate the violent overthrow of society to bring about socialism immediately.

Communism-Socialism’s often mistaken twin. Communism originated out of the writing of Karl Marx and his theories on capitalism and class struggle. Its core principles are largely similar to socialism except for the belief in the eventual withering away of the state and the emergence of a classless society signifying the end of history.

In practice, this has been difficult to carry out as the details in Marx’s own writings are vague about it, but broadly it has taken the shape of a violent revolution followed by a government of the proletariat. In the absence of a concrete plan of action, other writers, most notably Lenin and Mao, have taken up the task of planning a communist future.

With the collapse of the Soviet Union, communism has largely been consigned to the dustbin of history as only a few nations still profess to practice it and most of them only vaguely. However, despite the collapse of his ideology, Marx and his ideas still remain influential in society and politics. Similar to socialism, the growth of economic inequality has buoyed communism in the modern era; however, the taint of history proves a formidable obstacle to its return to the limelight.

Anarchism-The most flexible ideology of the group. Anarchism emerged as a reaction to the increasing organization and regimentation of society. Its core principle is largely the sacredness of voluntary action as the basis for human affairs. The lack of core tenets has made anarchism enormously malleable to the point where it has combined with other major ideologies to form anarcho-capitalism, anarcho-communism, and even anarcho-fascism.

The most identifiable strand of anarchism active today is Libertarianism. That’s right, libertarianism has its roots in anarchism, not classical liberalism as it likes to pretend. Libertarianism wishes to see the state reduced to its most elementary functions to leave the individual free to pursue their own interests voluntarily. Other strands exist; however, they are small and unorganized and merit little attention from this guide.

Fascism-The final ideology and the youngest. Fascism emerged in the early twentieth century to fill the void left by conservatism and to counter liberalism and communism. Its core principles are fanatical nationalism, total subservience to the state, militarism, and a fervent devotion to the status quo. In practice, this manifests as a rigid authoritarian regime that assumes power over most facets of life, a public cult of hero worship, and pervasive state-sponsored violence against all foreign elements in society.

After the horrors of the Second World War and the collapse of various dictatorships, fascism was rendered a dead ideology. More recently in response to growing income inequality, demographic unease amongst several countries, and the connective power of the Internet, fascism has begun to make a comeback in the West under various new disguises. Similar to socialism, individual movements are hard to pin down, but all have gravitated to the far right of the political spectrum and begun to co-opt parties and movements there.

Ideology is a much more nuanced and complicated phenomenon than I have described above and I encourage you to read more in your spare time. However, for the needs of ordinary life and the average level of political discourse, what I have given should be sufficient to understand what somebody is talking about when they give a person or group an ideological label and more importantly if they are right.

In addition, it is important to have a basic understanding of these ideologies; particularly the most dangerous ones that are beginning to have resurgence. It is only by recognizing them that we can be vigilant in trying to counter the frightening and deleterious effects they can have.