Moral Majorities: The Rhetoric of “Real” American Values in Contemporary Conservatism

This thesis explores how public figures associated with the Tea Party movement used rhetoric to create and perpetuate ideas about who "real" Americans are, what they believe, and how they should act. I analyze books by Sarah Palin, Newt Gingrich, Glenn Beck, and Jenny Beth Martin to demonstrate how they premise "real" American identity on whether or not individuals are perceived to hold a particular set of moral values and beliefs. I ultimately suggest that their rhetorical strategies primed the American public for anti-democratic rhetoric and led to the election of Donald Trump.

Name thesis:degree_name

Master of Arts

Level thesis:degree_level

masters

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

English

Department dc:contributor.department

English

Grantor dc:publisher

Virginia Tech

Year dc:date.issued

2024

Author dc:creator

• Pollard, Carter Mears

Chair dc:contributor.committeechair

• Dubinsky, James M.

Committee members dc:contributor.committeemember

• Commer, Carolyn
• Wiscomb, Avery

• Political Rhetoric
• Moral Politics
• Tea Party Movement
• Democracy
• Contemporary American Politics
• Donald Trump

Statement dc:rights

• In Copyright

Licence dc:rights.uri

• http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/

Language dc:language.iso

en

Dc Identifier Other

vt_gsexam:40846

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/119151