This dissertation explores the rhetorical construction of the local food movement through the narrative genre of the food exposé. On its face, local food appears to be a grassroots movement, and yet, through an analysis of the tropes used to describe and construct the movement, another story emerges – one intended for elite audiences. Using narrative critique, this project explores both the narratives of local food, as well as the deployment of that narrative into the material world and in the construction of particular identities. Ultimately, I argue that the narratives of local food give the impression that this way of eating and living is for everyone, while simultaneously entrenching an elite position that threatens the movement’s ability to forge identification with a wider audience. Thus, this dissertation highlights how considering narratives across texts reveals rhetorical inconsistencies that undermine both the rhetorical and material goals of the local food movement.
","abstract_html":"<p>This dissertation explores the rhetorical construction of the local food movement through the narrative genre of the food exposé. On its face, local food appears to be a grassroots movement, and yet, through an analysis of the tropes used to describe and construct the movement, another story emerges – one intended for elite audiences. Using narrative critique, this project explores both the narratives of local food, as well as the deployment of that narrative into the material world and in the construction of particular identities. Ultimately, I argue that the narratives of local food give the impression that this way of eating and living is for everyone, while simultaneously entrenching an elite position that threatens the movement’s ability to forge identification with a wider audience. Thus, this dissertation highlights how considering narratives across texts reveals rhetorical inconsistencies that undermine both the rhetorical and material goals of the local food movement.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Zimmerman, Anna Grace"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Ph.D.","degree_level":"Open Access Dissertation","degree_discipline":"Communication","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["James L. Cherney"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2015,"date_issued":"2015-01-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2015-01-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T06:00:26Z","subjects":["Local Food","Narrative","Rhetoric","Social Movement","Tropes","Communication"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://digitalcommons.wayne.edu/oa_dissertations/1417","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["James L. Cherney"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Zimmerman, Anna Grace"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2016-01-01T08:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Communication"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Open Access Dissertation"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Ph.D."]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Local Food","Narrative","Rhetoric","Social Movement","Tropes","Communication"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://digitalcommons.wayne.edu/oa_dissertations/1417"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["This dissertation explores the rhetorical construction of the local food movement through the narrative genre of the food exposé. On its face, local food appears to be a grassroots movement, and yet, through an analysis of the tropes used to describe and construct the movement, another story emerges – one intended for elite audiences. Using narrative critique, this project explores both the narratives of local food, as well as the deployment of that narrative into the material world and in the construction of particular identities. Ultimately, I argue that the narratives of local food give the impression that this way of eating and living is for everyone, while simultaneously entrenching an elite position that threatens the movement’s ability to forge identification with a wider audience. Thus, this dissertation highlights how considering narratives across texts reveals rhetorical inconsistencies that undermine both the rhetorical and material goals of the local food movement.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Distant Localities: The Rhetorical Contradictions Of Local Food Narratives"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["James L. Cherney"],"dc:creator":["Zimmerman, Anna Grace"],"dc:date.available":["2016-01-01T08:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["This dissertation explores the rhetorical construction of the local food movement through the narrative genre of the food exposé. On its face, local food appears to be a grassroots movement, and yet, through an analysis of the tropes used to describe and construct the movement, another story emerges – one intended for elite audiences. Using narrative critique, this project explores both the narratives of local food, as well as the deployment of that narrative into the material world and in the construction of particular identities. Ultimately, I argue that the narratives of local food give the impression that this way of eating and living is for everyone, while simultaneously entrenching an elite position that threatens the movement’s ability to forge identification with a wider audience. Thus, this dissertation highlights how considering narratives across texts reveals rhetorical inconsistencies that undermine both the rhetorical and material goals of the local food movement.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://digitalcommons.wayne.edu/oa_dissertations/1417"],"dc:subject":["Local Food","Narrative","Rhetoric","Social Movement","Tropes","Communication"],"dc:title":["Distant Localities: The Rhetorical Contradictions Of Local Food Narratives"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Communication"],"thesis:degree_level":["Open Access Dissertation"],"thesis:degree_name":["Ph.D."]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T06:00:26Z"}