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Political spectrum – left and right
A left-wing and right-wing political stance can be understood to mean different political opposites. Originally, it represented the seating arrangement of the political groups in the French National Assembly in the Constituent Assembly from 1789 to 1791. On the right sat the conservative-reactionary royalists, who were keen to preserve the old order and preferred a monarchy, while on the left sat the liberal-democratic representatives, who advocated a change in the current order and a republic. Over time, more and more supporters of social reform joined the left wing, the reformers. This was later adopted in other countries, such as Germany in the German Bundestag, Sweden in the Swedish Riksdag (Sveriges Riksdag) and the European Parliament.
The classification of political orientations into a right-left spectrum varies and has changed repeatedly throughout history. The classification can be based, for example, on egalitarianism, conservatism and progressivism, or internationalism.
Egalitarian and elitist
The representation of equality shows the equality of all people regardless of their status on the left and the inequality between aristocrats, citizens and peasants or entrepreneurs and workers on the right. Advocates of socialism and communism are on the left, while supporters of capitalism or monarchy are on the right.
Depending on the proponent, egalitarianism can be understood as equality in personal possessions or equality of opportunity in personal development and status. Over time, egalitarianism has been extended to include equality between men and women, religious and ethnic minorities, disabled people and sexual minorities.
Important proponents of egalitarianism include Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Friedrich Engels and John Rawls.
Progressive and conservative
This view can be explained primarily from a left-wing perspective in the context of the 19th century. At that time, the left wing consisted mainly of workers who fought for workers' rights, but also for human rights.
The division into progressive and conservative is proving critical today, as progressive ideas, such as the introduction of social systems and workers' rights, have now been implemented in many countries. The ongoing struggle to maintain or dismantle or make them more flexible would lead to a change in the meaning of the terms.
Internationalist and nationalist
Based on an egalitarian worldview, the left wing of the political spectrum in the early years saw itself as an international movement fighting for the rights of workers and farmers. From this perspective, the political left can be classified as internationally oriented, while the right wing of the political spectrum tends to be more nationalistic. In the wake of globalisation and the associated criticism of globalisation, however, there is also a tendency for the left wing of the political spectrum to lean more towards a national orientation in order to better preserve social achievements, while the right wing of the political spectrum tends to lean more towards an international orientation in order to gain economic advantages.
In the classical sense, internationalism remains on the left. This includes the basic idea that the left believes in the equality of all people, whereby no one should be disadvantaged because of any characteristic. This also results in the cross-border equality of all people. In the most left-wing form of society, communism, the aim is therefore to abolish nation states and form a global, stateless society.
