Charisma, Suffering, and Saturnalia

• In Event: 40420 - Section on Political Sociology Roundtables
  In Refereed Roundtable (60 minute): Table 20: The Politics of the Right Wing 2

Abstract

This paper draws on the Nietzschean underlay to Weber’s theory of charismatic revolution—specifically, the saturnalian reversal of values that occurs under the influence of ressentiment—in order to account for the ability of Trump and his followers to undercut and reinvent American moral culture. Reversing what Weber called the “theodicy of good fortune,” charismatic leaders frequently adopt postures of moral abjection within present value systems while at the same time envisioning new social arrangements that will lift them into positions of authority. The condemnation of opponents is key to this process of moral reinvention: from the devotionally-skewed perch where charismatic sightlines originate, rebukes from existing moral authorities are rendered in parallax view, gaining a function that is opposite to condemnation’s intended purpose insofar as it authenticates the righteousness of the one being condemned. By affirming the negative dimensions of identity that present moral authorities condemn, new charismatic identities are forged, creating an exclusive intimacy between leader and follower. Drawing on fieldwork and interviews with Trump supporters throughout the 2024 Presidential campaign, the presentation examines the salience of “garbage” to Trump’s moral entrepreneurship. After Biden's late October remarks about Trump supporters being "garbage," supporters began dressing up as garbage disposal workers, they becan affixing garbage to their clothing, they referenced Christian scripture about abjection and rejection, and they wore T-shirts with lines like "I'm voting for the Felon and the Hillbilly." I draw on interviews with participants at Trump rallies to display the contemporary importance of ressentiment for interpreting charismatic revolution.

Author

• Paul Joosse, University of Hong Kong