Antiestablishmentarianism
Encyclopedia
Antiestablishmentarianism (or anti-establishmentarianism) is a policy
or attitude that views a nation's power structure as corrupt, repressive, or exploitive.
Antiestablishmentarians adhere to the doctrine
of opposition to the social and political establishment. Their purpose is to subvert from within. This doctrine holds that establishments lose connection with the people and have their own agendas which frequently destroy the things they blindly don't address.
Antiestablishmentarianism has ties to anarchism
but should not be confused with antifederalism or antifeudalism
.
In a country with an established religion (e.g. England), "antiestablishmentarianism" means support for the end of the special status of the established religion
. In the 19th century, some English people opposed a movement to disestablish as the church exclusively recognized by the government as the official religion of the country. That countermovement was antidisestablishmentarianism
. Antidisestablishmentarianism is usually cited as the longest word in the English language, but according to some definitions it is exceeded by several others
.
This mindset was born from the anxiety and frustration/anger with the government during the Vietnam war. It was during this period that the younger citizenry were concerned about being drafted and sent away to war—a war that was not very popular. Many people were asking "Why are we there?" Others who believed we had made a grave error in entering Vietnam were protesting in different forms.
"Make peace not war" was a common cry. "Peaceniks" as some were named dressed with flowers in their hair, and in some cases formed communities called communes. Peaceniks experimented with drugs to meditate. In essence, during this time period, the norm and the standard (establishment) were categorized as archaic thinking. Fueled by music from artists with a common dislike of the war and the sheer numbers giving reinforcement of this antiestablishment mindset a term came about, Antidisestablishmentarianism was the opposite. This was a backlash against the antiestablishment mindset and actions.
Common Use Definition:
This is the practice of being anti or against those who are most everything that was established as the norm (marriage, government and laws, and most obviously war).
Policy
A policy is typically described as a principle or rule to guide decisions and achieve rational outcome. The term is not normally used to denote what is actually done, this is normally referred to as either procedure or protocol...
or attitude that views a nation's power structure as corrupt, repressive, or exploitive.
Antiestablishmentarians adhere to the doctrine
Doctrine
Doctrine is a codification of beliefs or a body of teachings or instructions, taught principles or positions, as the body of teachings in a branch of knowledge or belief system...
of opposition to the social and political establishment. Their purpose is to subvert from within. This doctrine holds that establishments lose connection with the people and have their own agendas which frequently destroy the things they blindly don't address.
Antiestablishmentarianism has ties to anarchism
Anarchism
Anarchism is generally defined as the political philosophy which holds the state to be undesirable, unnecessary, and harmful, or alternatively as opposing authority in the conduct of human relations...
but should not be confused with antifederalism or antifeudalism
Feudalism
Feudalism was a set of legal and military customs in medieval Europe that flourished between the 9th and 15th centuries, which, broadly defined, was a system for ordering society around relationships derived from the holding of land in exchange for service or labour.Although derived from the...
.
In a country with an established religion (e.g. England), "antiestablishmentarianism" means support for the end of the special status of the established religion
Religion
Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...
. In the 19th century, some English people opposed a movement to disestablish as the church exclusively recognized by the government as the official religion of the country. That countermovement was antidisestablishmentarianism
Antidisestablishmentarianism
Antidisestablishmentarianism is a political position that originated in 19th-century Britain in opposition to proposals for the disestablishment of the Church of England, that is, to remove the Anglican Church's status as the state church of England, Ireland, and Wales.The establishment was...
. Antidisestablishmentarianism is usually cited as the longest word in the English language, but according to some definitions it is exceeded by several others
Longest word in English
The identity of the longest word in English depends upon the definition of what constitutes a word in the English language, as well as how length should be compared...
.
Modern day use
Someone born in the 60's or before should be able to identify with the Nixon era and the war the country was involved in—they should be able to give a firsthand account of the antiestablishment mindset.This mindset was born from the anxiety and frustration/anger with the government during the Vietnam war. It was during this period that the younger citizenry were concerned about being drafted and sent away to war—a war that was not very popular. Many people were asking "Why are we there?" Others who believed we had made a grave error in entering Vietnam were protesting in different forms.
"Make peace not war" was a common cry. "Peaceniks" as some were named dressed with flowers in their hair, and in some cases formed communities called communes. Peaceniks experimented with drugs to meditate. In essence, during this time period, the norm and the standard (establishment) were categorized as archaic thinking. Fueled by music from artists with a common dislike of the war and the sheer numbers giving reinforcement of this antiestablishment mindset a term came about, Antidisestablishmentarianism was the opposite. This was a backlash against the antiestablishment mindset and actions.
Common Use Definition:
This is the practice of being anti or against those who are most everything that was established as the norm (marriage, government and laws, and most obviously war).
Hungry Generation
In India the group of writers and painters during 1960s who called themselves Hungryalists are the most important contributors to antiestablishment literature.See also
- ProtestProtestA protest is an expression of objection, by words or by actions, to particular events, policies or situations. Protests can take many different forms, from individual statements to mass demonstrations...
- BureaucracyBureaucracyA bureaucracy is an organization of non-elected officials of a governmental or organization who implement the rules, laws, and functions of their institution, and are occasionally characterized by officialism and red tape.-Weberian bureaucracy:...
- Peace movementPeace movementA peace movement is a social movement that seeks to achieve ideals such as the ending of a particular war , minimize inter-human violence in a particular place or type of situation, often linked to the goal of achieving world peace...
- Anti-warAnti-warAn anti-war movement is a social movement, usually in opposition to a particular nation's decision to start or carry on an armed conflict, unconditional of a maybe-existing just cause. The term can also refer to pacifism, which is the opposition to all use of military force during conflicts. Many...
- PacifismPacifismPacifism is the opposition to war and violence. The term "pacifism" was coined by the French peace campaignerÉmile Arnaud and adopted by other peace activists at the tenth Universal Peace Congress inGlasgow in 1901.- Definition :...
- AntidisestablishmentarianismAntidisestablishmentarianismAntidisestablishmentarianism is a political position that originated in 19th-century Britain in opposition to proposals for the disestablishment of the Church of England, that is, to remove the Anglican Church's status as the state church of England, Ireland, and Wales.The establishment was...