History Main / TheHorseshoeEffect

* The song "Won't Get Fooled Again" Music/TheWho tells the story of an idealistic young revolutionary. In the first few verses of the song, he sings praises of the revolution and how it will change things for the better. By the end of the song his tone is more cynical and disillusioned as he realizes that the new society created by the revolution is no better than the old society (specifically the lyrics "there's nothing in the streets / looks any different to me" and "meet the new boss / same as the old boss").

* Usually seen as a fallacy to be debunked on Reddit's "Bad Politics" sub. Make of that what you will.

* [[http://everydayfeminism.com/2014/11/trans-exclusive-feminism-looks-like/ This comic]] from Everyday Feminism draws such a comparison between TERFs and conservative Christians.

* [[http://everydayfeminism.com/2014/11/trans-exclusive-feminism-looks-like/ This comic]] from Everyday Feminism draws such a comparison between radical feminists and conservative Christians.

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/horseshoe21.png]]

* Parodied in ''Literature/AConfederacyOfDunces'', when Myrna sends Ignatius a letter describing a folk singer who gave her a pamphlet detailing a conspiracy theory that the Pope was planning to amass a nuclear armory. She assumed that the folk singer was a leftist anti-religious civil rights activist, and only later realized that the pamphlet was actually published by the notoriously anti-Catholic UsefulNotes/KuKluxKlan.

For example, in an ideal communist state the workers seize control of all private property in accordance with Marxist theory. To do so however, the Revolutionary Transitional government may likewise engender absolute loyalty to the state and the government among their citizens, and maintain rigid, censorious control of the press and media under the grounds that the state will eventually wither away once the reactionary enemy is defeated. However, it is not uncommon for far-right fascist governments to seize control of some private property in order to advance the national agenda, engender absolute loyalty to the state and government, and enforce rigid control of the press and media. Although the two governments' ideologies are ostensibly on opposite ends of the political spectrum (such that both states would consider one another mortal enemies), they exhibit at least superficial similarities in terms of practical policies. Consider also how some far-left radical feminists[[note]]In feminist circles some refer to such people as "trans-excluding radical feminists" (TERFs) and "sex-worker-excluding radical feminists" (SWERFs).[[/note]] and conservative Christian fundamentalists tend to have remarkably similar attitudes towards prostitution, pornography and (in some cases) UsefulNotes/{{Transgender}} people; or how far-right white supremacist groups and far-left black supremacist groups have in some cases been known to collaborate with one another in order to achieve common goals.

For example, in an ideal communist state the workers seize control of all private property in accordance with Marxist theory. To do so however, the Revolutionary Transitional government may likewise engender absolute loyalty to the state and the government among their citizens, and maintain rigid, censorious control of the press and media under the grounds that the state will eventually wither away once the reactionary enemy is defeated. However, it is not uncommon for far-right fascist governments to seize control of some private property in order to advance the national agenda, engender absolute loyalty to the state and government, and enforce rigid control of the press and media. Although the two governments' ideologies are ostensibly on opposite ends of the political spectrum (such that both states would consider one another mortal enemies), they exhibit at least superficial similarities in terms of practical policies. Consider also how some far-left radical feminists and conservative Christian fundamentalists tend to have remarkably similar attitudes towards prostitution, pornography and (in some cases) UsefulNotes/{{Transgender}} people[[note]]In feminist circles some refer to such people as "trans-excluding radical feminists" (TERFs) and "sex-worker-excluding radical feminists" (SWERFs).[[/note]]; or how far-right white supremacist groups and far-left black supremacist groups have in some cases been known to collaborate with one another in order to achieve common goals.

For example, in an ideal communist state the workers seize control of all private property in accordance with Marxist theory. To do so however, the Revolutionary Transitional government may likewise engender absolute loyalty to the state and the government among their citizens, and maintain rigid, censorious control of the press and media under the grounds that the state will eventually wither away once the reactionary enemy is defeated. However, it is not uncommon for far-right fascist governments to seize control of some private property in order to advance the national agenda, engender absolute loyalty to the state and government, and enforce rigid control of the press and media. Although the two governments' ideologies are ostensibly on opposite ends of the political spectrum (such that both states would consider one another mortal enemies), they exhibit at least superficial similarities in terms of practical policies.

For example, in an ideal communist state the workers seize control of all private property in accordance with Marxist theory. To do so however, the Revolutionary Transitional government may likewise engender absolute loyalty to the state and the government among their citizens, and maintain rigid, censorious control of the press and media under the grounds that the state will eventually wither away once the reactionary enemy is defeated. However, it is not uncommon for far-right fascist governments to seize control of some private property in order to advance the national agenda, engender absolute loyalty to the state and government, and enforce rigid control of the press and media. Although the two governments' ideologies are ostensibly on opposite ends of the political spectrum (such that both states would consider one another mortal enemies), they exhibit at least superficial similarities in terms of practical policies. Consider also how some far-left radical feminists and conservative Christian fundamentalists tend to have remarkably similar attitudes towards prostitution, pornography and (in some cases) UsefulNotes/{{Transgender}} people; or how far-right white supremacist groups and far-left black supremacist groups have in some cases been known to collaborate with one another in order to achieve common goals.

For example, in an ideal communist state the workers seize control of all private property in accordance with Marxist theory. To do so however, the Revolutionary Transitional government may likewise engender absolute loyalty to the state and the government among their citizens, and maintain rigid, censorious control of the press and media under the grounds that the state will eventually wither away once the reactionary enemy is defeated. However, it is not uncommon for far-right fascist governments to seize control of some private property in order to advance the national agenda, engender absolute loyalty to the state and government, and enforce rigid control of the press and media. Although the two governments' ideologies are ostensibly on opposite ends of the political spectrum (such that both states would consider one another mortal enemies), they exhibit at least superficial similarities in terms of practical policies. Consider also how leftist [=SWERFs and TERFs=] and conservative Christian fundamentalists tend to have remarkably similar attitudes towards prostitution, pornography and (in some cases) UsefulNotes/{{Transgender}} people; or how far-right white supremacist groups and far-left black supremacist groups have in some cases been known to collaborate with one another in order to achieve common goals.

For example, in an ideal communist state the workers seize control of all private property in accordance with Marxist theory. To do so however, the Revolutionary Transitional government may likewise engender absolute loyalty to the state and the government among their citizens, and maintain rigid, censorious control of the press and media under the grounds that the state will eventually wither away once the reactionary enemy is defeated. However, it is not uncommon for far-right fascist governments to seize control of some private property in order to advance the national agenda, engender absolute loyalty to the state and government, and enforce rigid control of the press and media. Although the two governments' ideologies are ostensibly on opposite ends of the political spectrum (such that both states would consider one another mortal enemies), they exhibit at least superficial similarities in terms of practical policies. Consider also how leftist radical feminists and conservative Christian fundamentalists tend to have remarkably similar attitudes towards prostitution, pornography and (in some cases) [[{{Transsexual}} transgender people]]; or how far-right white supremacist groups and far-left black supremacist groups have in some cases been known to collaborate with one another in order to achieve common goals.

This trope is when two ideologically opposed groups actually have a lot in common.

-->''...the Party rejects and vilifies every principle for which the Socialist movement originally stood, and it chooses to do this in the name of Socialism.''

* Usually seen as a fallacy to be debunked on Reddit's "Bad Politics" sub.

This trope is what happens when you have two groups who claim to be ideologically opposed to one another, and yet they have more beliefs in common than either would care to admit.

For example, in an ideal far-left communist state, the workers seizes control of all private property, in accordance with Marxist theory. To do so however, the Revolutionary Transitional government may likewise engender absolute loyalty to the state and the government among their citizens, and maintain rigid, censorious control of the press and media under the grounds that the state will eventually wither away once the reactionary enemy is defeated. However, it is not uncommon for far-right fascist governments to seize control of all private property in order to advance the national agenda, engender absolute loyalty to the state and government, and enforce rigid control of the press and media. Although the two governments' ideologies are ostensibly on opposite ends of the political spectrum (to the point that the two states might consider each other ideological enemies), they nevertheless exhibit ''pronounced'' ideological similarities. Consider also how leftist radical feminists and conservative Christian fundamentalists tend to have remarkably similar attitudes towards prostitution, pornography and (in some cases) [[{{Transsexual}} transgender people]]; or how far-right white supremacist groups and far-left black supremacist groups have in some cases been known to collaborate with one another in order to achieve common goals.

This trope can also lead people to misguidedly believe in the GoldenMeanFallacy, wherein the correct solution to a problem is assumed to be the middle of two extremes. Among political science circles, this trope can be criticized on the grounds that it presents centrist liberalism as the only option for society to take, which can end up being nothing more than calling for the status quo. Not to mention, the similarities between the far left and far right most likely are the result of both being opposed to liberalism, requiring them to utilize similar tactics, albeit for radically different ends. Both the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany being illberal was generally a logical given, and attempting to utilize the horseshoe theory against them because of this opposition to liberalism would also mean monarchism would have to be designated as NotSoDifferent from Communism, which is certainly not true. Case in point, assuming Stalin and Hitler actually believed in their ideologies, and weren't just despots for their own sake, their two regimes would end up looking radically different had they used their totalitarian means to squash liberalism and "win".

This trope is also a BerserkButton for most left libertarians (more so than for fascists or Leninists) such anarcho syndicalists or libertarian socialists, as their ideology tends to literally be the opposite (in theory at least) of fascism as they promote an immediate classless and and stateless society with social freedoms for all whereas a fascist promotes a totalitarian and unequal one. Indeed, much of the Horseshoe effect in politics assumes that the far left will be compromised only of Marxist Leninists (the ideology of the Communist nations the west was familiar with during the ColdWar) and ignore other tendencies that have less controversies in their relations to fascism. Ironically, left libertarians are likely to use this trope against their Leninist counterparts, accusing them of wanting to return to an older system with only the revolutionary Vanguard in charge this time. Such a feud was made famous with the antagonism between Lenin and left communist Rosa Luxembourg, prompting Lenin to write ''Left Communism: An Infantile Disorder'' which deemed that a Vanguard using his means was the only real way to crush the far right.

For example, in an ideal far-left communist state, the government seizes control of all private property, in accordance with Marxist theory. The government may likewise engender absolute loyalty to the state and the government among their citizens, and maintain rigid, censorious control of the press and media. However, it is not uncommon for far-right fascist governments to seize control of all private property in order to advance the national agenda, engender absolute loyalty to the state and government, and enforce rigid control of the press and media. Although the two governments' ideologies are ostensibly on opposite ends of the political spectrum (to the point that the two states might consider each other ideological enemies), they nevertheless exhibit ''pronounced'' ideological similarities. Consider also how leftist radical feminists and conservative Christian fundamentalists tend to have remarkably similar attitudes towards prostitution, pornography and (in some cases) [[{{Transsexual}} transgender people]]; or how far-right white supremacist groups and far-left black supremacist groups have in some cases been known to collaborate with one another in order to achieve common goals.

This is a sub-trope of NotSoDifferent. It is commonly seen in concert with tropes such as HeWhoFightsMonsters, YouAreWhatYouHate, BecameTheirOwnAntithesis or FullCircleRevolution. It is similar in some respects to PoesLaw; in that trope, the more extreme an opinion becomes the harder it is to tell whether it is intended satirically or not, whereas in this trope the more extreme an opinion gets, the harder it can be to tell whether it is coming from the far-left or the far-right. This trope can also lead people to misguidedly believe in the GoldenMeanFallacy, wherein the correct solution to a problem is assumed to be the middle of two extremes. Can be related to EnemyMine, wherein two enemies nevertheless realize they have a common goal and decide to work together to achieve it. It may also explain why people [[CommieNazis tend to lump Communists and Nazis together in the popular imagination]]. See also VillainHasAPoint and JerkassHasAPoint, when characters the heroes and the author represent negatively nevertheless are in the right for once (and StrawmanHasAPoint, when this happens unintentionally). For more information, see [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Horseshoe_theory this article]] on That Other Wiki.

* By the end of ''Literature/AnimalFarm'', the oppressive pigs running the farm are scarcely distinguishable (in appearance or beliefs) from the oppressive farmers they deposed.

As this trope originates in political theory it has naturally been applied to countless real life individuals, organisations and ideologies, but Administrivia/NoRealLifeExamplesPlease Feel free to add examples of creators applying this trope to individuals, organisations etc. within their works, however. [[noreallife]]

* ''Literature/TheHandmaidsTale'' depicts radical feminists as inadvertently having helped far-right religious fundamentalists to gain power by allying them on issues such as pornography, prostitution etc., referencing this occurring in reality.

* ''Literature/TheHandmaidsTale'' depicts radical feminists as having colluded with far-right religious fundamentalists in the foundation of a theocratic state, owing to their common ground on issues such as pornography, prostitution etc.

* Parodied in ''Literature/AConfederacyOfDunces'', when Myrna sends Ignatius a letter describing a folk singer who gave her a pamphlet detailing a conspiracy theory that the Pope was planning to amass a nuclear armory. She assumed that the folk singer was a leftist anti-religious civil rights activist, and only later realized that the pamphlet was actually published by the notoriously anti-Catholic Ku Klux Klan.

This is a sub-trope of NotSoDifferent. It is commonly seen in concert with tropes such as HeWhoFightsMonsters, YouAreWhatYouHate, BecameTheirOwnAntithesis or FullCircleRevolution. It is similar in some respects to PoesLaw; in that trope, the more extreme an opinion becomes the harder it is to tell whether it is intended satirically or not, whereas in this trope the more extreme an opinion gets, the harder it can be to tell whether it is coming from the far-left or the far-right. This trope can also lead people to misguidedly believe in the GoldenMeanFallacy, wherein the correct solution to a problem is assumed to be the middle of two extremes. Can be related to EnemyMine, wherein two enemies nevertheless realize they have a common goal and decide to work together to achieve it. See also VillainHasAPoint and JerkassHasAPoint, when characters the heroes and the author represent negatively nevertheless are in the right for once (and StrawmanHasAPoint, when this happens unintentionally). For more information, see [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Horseshoe_theory this article]] on That Other Wiki.

->''Fascism in America will attempt to advance under the banner of anti-fascism.''
-->- A quote about this trope, variously attributed to Creator/SinclairLewis, Huey Long and others.

As this trope originates in political theory it has naturally been applied to countless real life individuals, organisations and ideologies, but NoRealLifeExamplesPlease Feel free to add examples of creators applying this trope to individuals, organisations etc. within their works, however.

For example, in an ideal far-left communist state, the government seizes control of all private property, in accordance with Marxist theory. The government may likewise engender absolute loyalty to the state and the government among their citizens, and will maintain rigid, censorious control of the press and media. However, it is not uncommon for far-right fascist governments to seize control of all private property in order to advance the national agenda, engender absolute loyalty to the state and government, and enforce rigid control of the press and media. Although the two governments' ideologies are ostensibly on opposite ends of the political spectrum (to the point that the two states might consider each other ideological enemies), they nevertheless exhibit ''pronounced'' ideological similarities. Consider also how leftist radical feminists and conservative Christian fundamentalists tend to have remarkably similar attitudes towards prostitution, pornography and (in some cases) [[{{Transsexual}} transgender people]]; or how far-right white supremacist groups and far-left black supremacist groups have in some cases been known to collaborate with one another in order to achieve common goals.