A Politics of the Ordinary
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Ordinary people pursuing ordinary goods and leading ordinary lives-what better describes the ideal vision of a liberal democratic society? This modern celebration of the everyday is particularly prevalent in the U.S., where the pursuit of happiness has become the pursuit of the commonplace pleasures of a consumer society. In A Politics of the Ordinary, Thomas Dumm dramatizes how everyday life in the U.S. intersects with and is influenced by the power of events, on the one hand, and forces of conformity and normalcy on the other. Combining poststructuralist analysis with a sympathetic reading of a strain of American thought that begins with Emerson and culminates in the work of Stanley Cavell, A Politics of the Ordinary investigates incidents from everyday life, political spectacles, and popular culture. Whether juxtaposing reflections about boredom in rural New Mexico with the Emersonian theory of constitutional amendment, Richard Nixon's letter of resignation with Thoreau's writing to overcome quiet desperation, or demonstrating how Disney's Toy Story allegorizes the downsizing of the American white collar work force, Dumm's constant concern is to show how the ordinary is the primary source of the democratic political imagination.
AcknowledgmentsIntroduction11A Politics of the Ordinary102Resignation503Compensation714Civil Society905Toy Stories1186Aliens1397Wild Things159Notes171Index205About the Author215
