National Functionalism
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National Functionalism | |
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| File:NationalFunctionalistAxe.png | |
| Ideology | Cultural Nationalism Corporatism Militarism Syncretism Reactionary Modernism Totalitarianism Chauvinism |
| Political position | Far-Right |
National Functionalism is a far right, authoritarian, culturally nationalistic political ideology. It is loosely based on the sociological theory of functionalism and is characertised by traditional beliefs in a strong centralised state, a rejection of individualism, superiority based on cultural origins and that the state is a living organism of which individuals are merely constituent parts, commonly referred to as the communauté populaire.
National Functionalism arose in Gaullican militaristic political circles in the late 19th century; following the war of the Triple Alliance. Gaullica's defeat in the war, the removal of 'Gaullican' territories such as Kesselbourg and Hennehouwe and the fragmentation of its traditional allies in Soravia and Valduvia left the nation diplomatically isolated and with a strong revanchist sentiment.
Its tenants can be traced to Gaullican Field Marshal Gaëtan de Trintignant, who wrote numerous political treatise demanding a rejection of 'modernity'; principally the constitutional amendments that had whittled the power of the Gaullican monarchy post the Age of Revolutions. In two political treatises, de Trintignant outlined his beliefs on the necessity of a strong central authority, a rejection of both capitalism and socialism, a strong sense of social cohesion underpinned by a civic national identity and the establishment of the means to spread this identity. Inspired by the growing field of sociology, de Trintignant viewed the state as a parallel to the human body - and health achieved when its parts were working in concert.
Whilst some scholars argue that National Functionalism as an ideology is specifically tailored to Gaullican political development, it is clear that it has influenced the development of political thought outside of Gaullica's borders. Some have argued that Shangea's National Principlism was directly inspired by National Functionalism, whilst in Euclea itself Functionalism entered southern Euclean countries like Etruria, Paretia, Piraea and Amathia through pro-Gaullican elements of the military. In Ruttland, Functionalism gave birth to the National Resurrection movement.
Since the end of the Great War, National Functionalism has been outlawed as a political ideology within Gaullica - though several groups have been accused of being "neo-functionalist". Since 2010, 'functionalist' has re-entered political discourse as a pejorative term for those on the far-right, especially in the context of Paretian and Etrurian nationalist groups like the Tribune Movement.
Etymology
The Gaullican term fonctionnalisme is in explicit reference to the sociological term, derived from the works of René Dajuat and his student Hugues Subercaseaux, which itself stems from the medieval Solarian word functionalis. Gaëtan de Trintignant aimed to present a political theory that was based in empirical science and during his post-war years as a writer and fringe political figure, he became increasingly enamoured with the developing school of thought of sociology within Gaullican academic circles.
In a series of letters published in weekly editions of the 'Verlois Herald' throughout March and April of 1861, de Trintignant wrote that: "if we were to understand society, we would understand everything! By understanding social structure, we can create a society that is, of course, greater than all others."
His desires to formulate a political theory on the basis of this idea of 'purpose' or 'function' led to his creation of the Function of Man, published in 1881. In it, he repeatedly calls on a form of 'functionalism' to identify the functions of Gaullican society that had, in his words, driven it to become the pre-eminent world power, before discussing the moral obligations and functions of that society in spreading it to the rest of the world.
Fonctionnalisme national was specifically curated as a term to distinguish it from its sociological point of inspiration, and was the term used by detractors amongst the left-wing sections of Gaullica's senate to aim to mock the ideology.
History
Tenets
Civic nationalism, identity and race
Unlike most other Euclean political entities which developed nationalism as an ethnic identity, Gaullican political theorists were often critical of that concept. Traditionally, nationalism has been held to have been born by the Weranian Revolution of 1785, with Weranian radicals associating their ideas of radical republicanism with that of a unified Weranian ethnic identity.
In Gaullica, by contrast, the idea of ethnic nationalism was in principle rejected. Instead, some scholars have argued that a separate strain of nationalism grew there. Porthos Asselineau, writing in the early 1900s, compared the 'identities of the peoples of Euclea' and described of the Gaullican thought process that: "ethnic nationalism makes no sense, Gaullican identity is achievable. It is a civic identity, beyond the constraints of blood and ancestry." According to Porthos, the 'nationalism' present within Gaullica was a "nationalism of culture; one not set in on racial or ethnic lines, but on values and a way of life that others can be educated into."
In his seminal work, The Function of Man, Gaëtan de Trintignant wrote on the topic of race extensively. In the opening of his chapter: "The Peoples of Gaullica" de Trintignant states that "race is not real". Functionalist doctrine and ideology on race was largely dismissive of race as a factor of identity. Trintignant surmised his belief on what it meant to be 'Gaullican' as not being attached to the 'fabrication of the Gaullican ethnic group', but a set of cultural, linguistic, moral and value-based institutions and practices. He compared it extensively to what he called 'Weranic Nationalism', which he argued was exclusively concerned with "linguistic brotherhood".
To Trintignant the Gaullican identity was a civic and cultural identity that one could join into by assimilation; it was an inclusive identity that individuals from around the globe could and should aspire to be apart of. He described the primary goal of Gaullican imperialism to be a great "mission to spread civilisation". In this regard, many contemporary thinkers describe Gaullican nationalism to have evolved into that of 'civilisational identity', with Estmerish historian Paige Moss referring to it as a "a mimicry of Solarian identity".
The way in which this approach to nationalism was adopted has been brought into question by theorists from within and without Gaullica. In spite of what the Functionalist belief may have outlined, many policies within the empire were implemented strictly on a racial basis. Blanchiment was a Gaullican colonial policy adopted by the empire and maintained and expanded by the Functionalist regime that encouraged white men in the colonies to marry indigenous women in the hopes of 'whitening' their progeny.
Additionally many critics of the theory including Gaullican socialist thinker Éliane Bruguière argue that the functionalist idea of the 'civic-cultural identity' was an exportable form of 'ethnic nationalism'.
Authority, government and the state
Functionalism espouses the belief that the state exists beyond the structures and institutions of society and is actually a physical representation of collective cultural consciousness. In this regard, it is an extremely statist ideology. In the eyes of the ideology the states' apparatuses exist to serve cohesive functions for the betterment of society and its inhabitants. Rafael Duclerque famously compared the state to the intricacies of machine: "each part is unique, individual and special; but a gear has no purpose unless it is within a grander concert."
Opposed to democracy, liberalism and socialism, Functionalism mandates the investiture of power in a strongly centralised authority. Whilst Trintignant exclusively referred to this entity as an absolute monarch, ostensibly the Gaullican Emperor, when implemented in Gaullica the investiture of power was focused in the position of Premier; Rafael Duclerque.
Trintignant surmised that "if a state has an institution within it; it serves a purpose. If it served no purpose, it would have no use to the state." Whilst he did argue that you could divide the constituent parts of the nation into as many arbitrary pieces as you wanted, Trintignant settled on four distinct social groups that encompassed all others: the government, the family (or women, depending on publication), the armed forces and the church. These four social groups are at the forefront of Functionalist belief in the Communauté populaire, (People's Community), the mechanisms used to keep people - and therefore society - united, prosperous and happy.